25 years in the rap game, DJ Commando knows what it means to hustle, especially in attempts to continue putting his state of Iowa on the hip-hop scene.

DJ Commando aka Troy Williams was born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and began DJ'n in the radio biz in 1983.

While grinding 13 years of doing radio, Commando also spent his time opening up for hip-hop superstars such as Ice Cube, Too $hort, Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock. From house parties to club promotions, Commando was making himself a household name on the Iowa hip-hop scene. In 1990, he was signed to independently managed New York group Soldiers N Command where he adopted his creative moniker. In 2003, when Commando moved to Waterloo, Iowa and began working at KBOL 100.1 FM, he really kicked his career in high gear. He teamed up with the Core DJs and later received the opportunity to appear on BET's Rap City. Commando currently runs an internet radio station at www. 1073vip.com Iced Out Radio, serving as the Assistant Music Director where he helps promote underground and independent artists. Scoop correspondant broadKast aka Caleb M. Davis got the chance to talk with the DJ'n entrepreneur on his many endeavors and his future.

SCOOP: What would you say motivated you to pursue a career in DJ'n & promotions?

COMMANDO: Well I would say from my family. My mom and my sister loved music and I would always grab their records when I was young and listen to them for hours. I basically grew up in a music-filled household. I played the saxophone in junior high and I guess it just stuck with me from there. 

SCOOP: Familiarize some of our readers on the Iowa hip-hop scene because I'm sure alot of people don't even know hip-hop exists in Iowa.

COMMANDO: [Laughs] Yeah, we get that alot! Iowa IS 85% white but we still have a great number of hip-hop lovers up here. Yes, we bump music from the south, from the east and the west but what I feel we do is we make our own style from adapting and taking some of those styles from all over the hip-hop nation and incorporating those styles into our own Iowa flavor.

SCOOP: What achievements are you planning to accomplish that you have yet to succeed?

COMMANDO: I plan to keep pushing, keep grinding and get more and more independent artists out. Independent is the way the to go. I'm not dissing any major labels or anything like that, but when you look at it, you'll receive more money and own more if you go independent. My plan is to continue guiding these young men in the right direction and teaching them it's not only about just rapping and getting the glamour. I want these men to know the business on the whole, you know?! They need to know how to build their brand and progress from there. They need to find someone to represent their product as well as represent themselves and that's what I plan to accomplish in the future.

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