In the age of Soulja Boy Tell ‘Em and Waka Flaka Flame, the state of Hip Hop remains the subject of much debate.

Some have gone as far as to say the musical art form once known for its conscious lyrics is now dead. Rap artist Jeff Lucky disagrees.

“Hip Hop was here before all of us, so we can’t destroy it,” he said. “Hip Hop is fine. There are a lot of people making good music right now. It’s just a question of what you are exposed to. If you only listen to the radio, then you may miss some things.”

Qcitymetro.com recently sat down with the Charlotte native to discuss his life and the release of his first full-length solo album, Soul Motivation, which was released last month under his independent label Summersoul Records.

Lucky, born Jeff Moonie Jr., is a far cry from the stereotypical rapper. No big-faced watch. No iced-out gold chain. He has a style all his own. With his mane picked out into a wild curly afro or tamed down with braids, you will often find him dressed casually in his signature color -- green -- and sporting a T-shirt donning his black shamrock logo.

With Soul Motivation, he said he wanted to create a soulful Hip Hop album that fans can listen to from beginning to end. He wants listeners to be inspired and walk away feeling they know everything about him without ever having to ask him a question.

“I feel like, when I talk about my experiences, you will get something from it,” he said. “You will find a way to relate to it because it’s all about overcoming and getting through things.”

The message of turning tragedy into triumph is a reoccurring them in Lucky’s music.

He candidly raps about a dark period in his life when he felt as if he were “dying on the vine.” He admits to drinking as much as a fifth of liquor daily.

It was near the end of 1999, after his sister, Cherica “Summer” Adams, was murdered. She was pregnant at the time with a child fathered by former Carolina Panther Rae Carruth, who is currently in prison for conspiring in her murder.

Lucky said he was devastated. “I didn’t handle it well,” he said. “I started indulging in some reckless behavior. There was a lot of drinking.”

Adams had been the one who encouraged Lucky to pursue his musical aspirations. He said she sacrificed everything, including her career in real estate, to manage his rap group, DPS, and help them record their first album.

After her death, Lucky said he lost his ability to be creative and stopped making music for several years.

He credits his late father, Jeff Moonie Sr., with helping him get his life back on track. His father encouraged him to focus on the positive things in life and engage himself in the things he enjoyed.

Following his father’s advice, Lucky began boxing, taking piano lessons and became an avid reader. Soon he found the inspiration and motivation to get back to writing, not only music but screenplays as well.

He learned a valuable lesson. “You have to appreciate the people around you,” he said. “But you have to know that if you don’t have anyone or anything else to rely on, you have to be able to look inside and lean on your soul.”

That lesson came in handy when he lost his father to bone cancer a few years later.

Before his father passed, Lucky documented the progression of his illness in the movie “Donor,” which won first place in the 2005 Asheville Film Festival.

“When I lost my father, instead of falling back off the cliff again, I gathered myself and used it for motivation and fuel to keep moving,” said Lucky.

In 2008, Lucky moved to Los Angeles, where he continued making music, writing screenplays and working in film.

He was tapped to write “Read Between the Lines” for an episode of Cold Case. The episode, which was named after his song and based on its lyrics, was one of the highest rated of the season for CBS.

Now, splitting his time between the east and west coasts, Lucky continues to pursue his dreams, but he does not consider himself a dreamer.

“We don’t dream; we scheme,” he said. “Dreamers take naps and have fantastic visions. Schemers plot and plan, they move and groove to make a way when there is no way.”

For more information or to purchase the CD log onto www.summersoulRecords.com.

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