A New Isco weekend we have news, we have features, we have commentary, and we have music.
Here's one of our favorite musical segments from the year.
They say art and beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but it can certainly be in the
ear of the beholder, and Ashkash's own Lamar Walker is working hard to create that kind
of art.
New Isco weekends Todd Michaels meets up with the young rapper and singer to talk about
his journey in music.
Meet Lamar Walker, better known by his stage name Lil L.A. Mars.
Freshman Year, my teacher jokingly nicknamed me L.A. Mars for fun.
Then in my sophomore year, I took that name of put a Z at the end, and I converted to L.A.
Mars.
After that, right before junior year, I decided to make a meeting for it, which is L.A.
Mars is a abbreviation for Lil L.A.
Last Alien on Mars.
Me being on the higher level in life, knowing how unique I am.
Originally from Milwaukee, Lil L.A. Mars moved to Ashkash just a year and a half ago, but
treasured his time in Milwaukee.
I had a good life.
I was in the suburbs, the majority of my life in Milwaukee, so it's a small world, it's
a truly a small world in Milwaukee.
You know everybody on every block, on every street, maybe.
But then, yeah, I don't regret living there at all.
That's my home.
While admitting that Milwaukee is a small world, he also says Ashkash is a community where
everyone knows just about everyone else, and his move to Northeast Wisconsin was not planned.
It was really on a whim, because I wasn't planning to come to Ashkash.
My mom and my sister's was already living here for a couple of years before me, and I was
in a situation where my father and my stepmom, and look at me right now.
So it's like a year and a half later, I've gained so much sense, and I do not regret it
at all.
Despite music being his passion, Lil L.A. Mars faced skepticism early on.
His father told him that music was just a hobby.
And rather than discourage him, those words fueled his determination to prove his potential
and achieve his dreams.
What's funny about when he said that is that he supported me so much before that.
Which is led up to him saying that because I was procrastinating.
So he had almost every right to say that at that point.
I later figured that out, but it did hurt me.
It did hurt me a lot.
I've talked to him recently, and he's proud.
Like I could tell he's proud because knowing that his son is actually doing something, not
just doing something, he's creating an impact.
And I want to say thank you to my dad, because and I have.
And I said it in a full video that I've created about it too.
If he didn't say that, I wouldn't be this far.
Lil L.A. Mars' interest in music goes way back.
I've been wanting to be a musician ever since I was like six.
Because I was singing since then, and I fell in love with the idea of Michael Jackson
back in the day.
And still, to this day, I'm fascinated by everything he does.
Like I studied everything about him.
And I look at it and I use him as a reference in a lot of things that I do, even everyday
things sometimes.
So it's like my fashion the way that I speak.
Well, it might be easy to think of Lil L.A. Mars' just another young local rapper.
If you look and listen deeper and longer, you'll find quite a bit more diversity.
I feel like me being diverse is the best thing for me because I always love the idea of
being versatile.
And just bringing back Michael Jackson again, like he's done it all, like he's basically
done every genre.
I don't think people realize that Michael Jackson is able to do jazz music, and he was
doing tap dancing back in the 70s.
So that proves like he could do almost every genre if he felt like it.
While he's played smaller gigs and opened mics across Aschka, she got his first big break
last weekend with a show at Oblios Lounge on Main Street that show coincided with another
big event.
I actually have a new album coming out.
So that's also amazing.
I do have a few songs out for the album as well as singles, like Lee singles.
But I'm trying to wait for the like the actual album to like really push it out and everything.
I want to like really home myself being like the original artist rather than just, oh,
he has this style from this guy, this guy, this guy, the influences are there, of course.
But it's never me wanting to be that person.
It's just my influences there, but it's crammed up into this one body.
While pondering what's next, Lil L.A. Mars ends up taking a trip back in time and makes
a revelation about music in his life.
And the next year and a half, I should be selling our shows in Atlanta because that's my
next big move because my real plan the whole time before coming to Aschka's was me leaving
to Atlanta.
But me being here was just the best thing for me because seeing people in real time supporting
who I am.
And when I first started in 2017, I started, you know, just by free styling with friends,
like at the lunch table.
Just the whole thing about that, thanks to Eric David out there.
He just usually go by Mr. Asch back in the day.
But it really gets deeper because he gave me my first mic.
So he gave me my first blue yaddy mic and I still have it today.
I got a shout out to my older one, Mr. Nook and Ms. Leroy.
The teachers that really molded me into being more of the musician.
I started looking at music in a different way.
I don't know how, but it was just, you ever get that spark where something just gets clear
out of nowhere.
It's like, okay, this is it.
You kind of confuse that first.
It's like, how come I didn't look at this sooner, like how come I didn't visualize the
idea of what I really wanted like this sooner?
As soon as that day happens, it's like, that's when you know.
That's when you truly know that that's, it's about you, it's about what you're trying
to do.
You can stream Lil L.A. Mars on Spotify and Apple Music.
You can also like and follow him on his socials.
For new Let's Go Weekend, I'm Todd Michaels.
On the corner, there's people gathered all around at this coffee shop.
Too much going on in this town, for the side of this place, the side of this Tuesday,
Saturday night, after my mind getting stained, to showcase talent through the night.
This ain't coming, this ain't something, always welcome, something free, I'm on my way
Such a nice day, I love that I'm across the street, saying name on it, saying it could
be necessary to do your day, but like a day that's for you, can you enjoy with what
you bring, it's about what I've been in the mood, and I like the thinnest food, I want
to see when I can do, but the cleaner I've been doing, in a trash out of what's this
all about, it's old music, no one laughs at to get the groovy, in this place, I don't know.
I'm not so neat from the front to the back, it's like we're fellin' up on your boot like
that, rotation motion across the room, she's not against our standards, she's so full
of portraits with this mood, a crockless lashing is like their proof, in one more and more
and that's how I have to get out there for some rap, is nobody, people of love it, we need
it as much as we can feel, don't be busy, get up dead to the flow of music, it's
therein' no matter how it's messed on the list, it's about to go down, I'ma do my thing,
you said it's dead for me, let's hear it to the sauce of the same, no, that's fine, that's
fine, under the moon.
Thank you for being a part of Newisco Weekend, the best of 2024, Newisco Weekend is produced
written and directed by Lisa Hale, our executive producer is Todd Michaels, with additional features
by Conrad Krieger, Brittany Merlot, Melissa K, Joanne Croulette, Todd Michaels and Peach
Wabba, we have commentary from Amanda Nimmer, thank you for helping Newisco Weekend have
a great 2024, you can email Lisa.Hale at civicmedia.us or you can text via the civic media app if
you ever have a story you'd like to hear covered.
I'm civicmedia, Northeast, Wisconsin, Bureau Chief Lisa Hale for WISS and WGBW News.
Be unstoppable.
