Coming out of Eastside Tucson, Arizona, CharZard is an artist whose story is just as important as the music he creates. Raised throughout some of the roughest environments on the Eastside, including the area known as 30Block, CharZard grew up surrounded by drugs, violence and circumstances that forced him to mature at an early age.
His father passed away from a heroin overdose when CharZard was only eight years old. With his mother working constantly, much of his upbringing happened in the streets. By the time he was 16, he had dropped out of high school. The streets became his classroom, teaching him lessons that would eventually shape both the man and the artist he would become.
Music eventually became a way for CharZard to express everything he had experienced. As a young adult, he began traveling across the country, performing at small venues wherever opportunities presented themselves. Before his incarceration, he had multiple cars, apartments and a growing reputation throughout Tucson. When artists came through the city, promoters would often reach out to CharZard as the person who could make things happen.
His connections eventually put him around artists and members of crews connected to names such as Chance the Rapper, ScHoolboy Q, Audio Push, members of A$AP and Fredo Santana. But while things appeared to be moving in the right direction, his life would soon take a drastic turn.
After undergoing leg surgery, CharZard became addicted to lean. Within a year, his life spiraled out of control. What followed was a series of events that included multiple shootouts over the span of two days and ultimately led to his arrest. In total, he faced approximately 24 felony charges.
That moment could have been where his story ended.
Instead, it became the beginning of another chapter.
While incarcerated, CharZard continued pursuing music and education. He earned an Associate of Arts degree from college and helped bring what he describes as the first real recording studio class to an Arizona prison. The program gives incarcerated individuals the opportunity to learn graphic design, video editing, music video production, audio recording, music production and podcasting.
Rather than allowing his environment to define the rest of his life, he began using it as a place to build.
That same mindset carried over into his own music. CharZard has developed a sound that moves between nuanced boom bap, darker modern production and styles reminiscent of artists like Future. His biggest inspirations include Eminem, Future and Gang Starr, but his own music doesn’t feel like a copy of any of them.
His sound comes from somewhere much closer to home.
The desert.
Growing up in Tucson left an imprint on his voice, perspective and approach to music. There is something distinct about the way CharZard puts his experiences into his records. Even when the subject matter reflects a past filled with decisions and circumstances that ultimately contributed to his incarceration, he isn’t simply glorifying that lifestyle. He is documenting where he was, who he was and how those experiences shaped the person he is becoming.
There is a difference between telling a story and living it. CharZard has done both.
Outside of music, his life has continued to evolve. He became engaged to his fiancé from Finland two years ago and has also helped found an e-commerce website with The Artist Connect, which is currently going through a rebranding process under SavageCitizenMusic LLC.
Now, his focus is on what comes next.
CharZard is preparing to release his entire EP, Valley Fever, in the coming months, followed shortly by his new LP, Control Freak. The project carries another important piece of his story because the entire album was recorded and created inside the prison studio.
That makes the music more than just a collection of songs. It represents what can happen when someone decides to create instead of surrender to their circumstances.
CharZard has also broken new ground visually, becoming the first incarcerated person to produce a real music video in the streets while being incorporated into the video through AI technology. It’s another example of him finding ways to create despite limitations that would have stopped most people from trying.
There is also something difficult to explain about CharZard beyond the music. People who have met him in person often notice his presence before they understand his story. His energy isn’t something that needs to be announced or forced. It’s felt.
His motion may not have reached the surface yet, but everything he has experienced has been preparing him for this next chapter.
