Tell us your story and what makes your unique
My name is Thomas Contreras Holmes. I rap under the name Green Mischief. I was born on March 30, 1993, in San Jose, Ca. My mom and dad both were in my life, and both were in the same house until 5th grade. That is important to say because, consciously and unconsciously, they created someone who was literally made to be a MC. My dad taught himself how to play the bass guitar and was always playing music loud in the house. My mom was ok with it and did the same. In the years leading up to kindergarten, I remember my dad putting me to sleep and putting Tony! Toni! Toné! “Let’s Get Down” or “Anniversary” on repeat. During the day, it would be Earth, Wind and Fire, Space Jam soundtrack, and the most fire foundational black American music there was. And every day, I would see my dad, and he would always have the bass guitar in his hand. As long as he wasn’t eating, he had the bass in his hand. During this prekindergarten phase of my life, my mom was also using a lot of songs to teach me things, and the shows I watched had a ton of singing or rapping. It was with my mom in the car where I had my first “I Love Hip Hop” moment. She was playing 106 KMEL, which is a radio station in the Bay. They put on ODB “Got Your Money” on the radio, and I remember my brain melting. I still didn’t understand that there were different music genres and thought all music was music, so I didn’t say wow, I love hip hop. It was just the first conscious seed hip hop had set in me. Now time goes on, and I’m now in school, and my mom is going hard on my studies. Meaning when I only had to write a new word that I was learning 3 times on the paper, she would make me do it for two full lines. I only had to read for 15 mins a day, and she had me reading a page minimum of like 10 to 15. And I’m only in 1st grade by the way. In the end of 1st grade, I had moved to Delhi, ca. It was a small town with no police station and basically no other black people. Only Anglo whites and white Hispanics. When 2nd grade comes, my mom is doubling down on the studies, but now its showing results. I was reading full Harry Potter books, and during the school day, when we had our English classes, I had to sit in the classes with the 3rd graders. One day in class, the assignment was to write a poem. I chose to write about the color red for whatever reason. The teacher loved it so much she put it in some poetry competition against the best poems of kids in the 2nd-4th grade in the school district. I ended up winning it. At the same time, I’m experiencing a lot of racism from the other kids. I have to fight every other day. If it wasn’t the racism, it was a group of Hispanic kids who were gang banging, and a lot of times, the two would mix. So when I get home, I subconsciously would watch so much hip hop stuff cuz they looked like me. One day I decided I needed to participate and create in my culture. At 8, I knew I could never NOT become a rapper. My favorite group is Outkast. They are different from the way I was different my whole life in school. I needed their music badly to survive at the time. As time went on, my parents encouraged my choice of being a rapper and bought me classic hip hop albums like Slick Rick’s “The Great Adventures of Slick Rick” and “The Art of Story Telling”, a best of MC Lyte album, and Black Sheep’s first album. All this is happening while I’m still digesting Outkast Ludacris, Snoop and Dre, and the hyphy movement. In 7th grade, I came up with my rap name. I wanted to be green lantern, but I couldn’t. And on the back of a video game, it tells you the game rating and why. One day I was buying a video game, and on the back, it said its rating, and one of the reasons for its rating was COMIC BOOK MISCHIEF. Emphasis on the MISCHIEF. Right then and there, I knew my name would be Green Mischief. I’ve dedicated my entire life to rapping and even sacrificed all of my 20s just to make a career happen. I was doing things like starving myself for two and a half months for a feature or sleeping in my car in the work parking lot. It was either I become a rapper or I killed myself, as dark as that is. I love hip hop more than I love myself, and what keeps me alive is the fact that I get to do the greatest artform in the greatest culture in the world. And here we are today.
What makes me unique is, like I said, I love this shit more than I love myself. I studied hip hop artists like people who study the bible. You can hear the years of work and the true love put into my music. My favorite group is Outkast which means I must find the newest, most creative way to make music, and I must not EVER ride the trendy wave. If I’m not true to myself, I’m not being true to the culture and the art, and I’m letting down not only those I grew up listening to, but I’m letting down those who believed in me. There is only one of me, and I’m true to that, and I’m true to being creative. This isn’t about getting paid even though I’m a adult and do need money to survive. Rapping gives me life, and you’ll never find a human that loves hip hop and wants to live his life rapping more than me. So the difference is I love hip hop with all my heart and studied the greats from all eras, and put my heart and soul into every line, and I never rob the listener of creativity and something new and exciting.
What influenced your love for music?
I have so many influences when it comes to my love for music. My parents, for sure, started off my love for music. But the biggest influence is the universe and/or god. I was made to rap, and I didn’t have a say in the matter. This is my destiny, and every woman I have ever been with was and always will be second to my relationship with hip hop.
What would you say are the biggest challenges you face as a producer/artist?
It is extremely hard to pick my biggest challenge. I’ve faced so many challenges, such as sleeping in my car or using all your money on music so you literally have no money to eat for the next 2 I’ve even struggled with having no where to record and have had to deal with jealous group members who’ve tried to undermine me. The biggest challenge I faced was getting the money to fund my career and being patient. I wasn’t willing to risk my career selling drugs or doing something illegal, and I wasn’t willing to do the trend and compromise my integrity. So while I was playing fair and with love for the game, others are cheating right in my face.
What inspired you to get into this industry?
As I said, I had no choice but to be in this industry, this is what I was meant to If I weren’t making music, I’d be so miserable to the point where I’d kill myself or be a menace to society, then kill myself.
How important is the mindset when starting your career in the music industry?
Mindset is the most important thing you can have coming into the industry. That’s a huge factor in who you’re going to be in this game. You have to have your morals in line and know what you will and will not take because this industry is so shady and will take advantage in a Even if you suck at rapping, your mindset will keep you motivated to keep going. If you have it in your mind that you’re never going to give up, then you will not give up. There are millions of Kobe Bryant quotes talking about his killer mindset and the need to be the best. There were basketball players just as talented as Kobe, but they didn’t have that warrior mindset
What year did your you see your biggest spike in success and notoriety for your talent ? And what was that event, and if you remember, how did you feel?
The year I saw my biggest growth was 2022. In 2021, I had a amazing year and did songs with artists I grew up listening to. But in 2022, I took the show on the road and got to meet the people i grew up with and am making music with. I’ve been on tours, I’ve had conversations with Yukmouth backstage about writing. I got to meet keak da sneak and got to go to his 45th birthday celebrations. I got to meet dizzy wright and jeff turner on tour. I got to travel in and out of this state and meet artists I never thought I’d get to meet, like J Meast or Baby Eazy-E. My numbers went way up, I have artist phone numbers, and have been signing way more I even dropped a song with Mistah F.A.B. and keak da sneak on it, which was a dream I had since 7th grade. 2022 was the year I have seen the biggest growth
What does fear mean to you?
Fear to me means failing at rap and having to go back to school. Or having to work a regular job and not I’ve sacrificed everything for rap, including money, women, time, family, fun, and opportunities to move up in jobs. Still, I couldn’t because I’m committed to music, not where I work. So me failing means I sacrificed for nothing, and I wasted from 8 years old to now chasing a dream that was never meant to be mine. I have nightmares about being 30 in school with a bunch of 19-year-olds at a jr college embarrassed af. Or nightmares about working fast food and dying at work in old age. Fear means not making it in rap.
What does success mean to you? Becoming the best?
Success means becoming the best MC Success means fulfilling the dream of the 8-year-old boy who believed in himself and made a choice. I owe him that. I owe it to the 8-year-old me to prove he was right.
What should the industry be expecting soon?
What the industry can expect is a whole lot of Green Mischief. A lot of your favorite rappers getting eaten alive on a track with me. It’s already started to happen. A lot of songs with your favorite rappers and a lot of charity work in the foundational black American community. Also, since I grew up on Ice Cube 2Pac, Gambino, and Outkast expect some controversy due to the things I say in my songs.
Biggest obstacle you’ve overcome so far?
I think the biggest obstacle I’ve ever faced in life is when I was 14, a girl said i got her after taking care of the baby for a year, I found out the baby wasn’t mine. I was on independent studies for a year basically, and I moved out of my parents’ house into her house, and she was extra abusive. She broke up with me and was trying to use the baby as a weapon whenever I had something good going on. I would get out of school at 2:25, and by 2:30, I’ll have 7 text messages and 15 missed calls. It was crazy. And I said to myself, If I’m putting up with this and the baby ain’t even looking like me, then I need to take a test. And after waiting about a month, I got the results back, and the baby wasn’t mine. That was the biggest make-or-break obstacle I’ve ever faced in my entire life.
What are your goals in the industry?
My biggest goal in the industry is to be the best I can be. I want to knock someone out of the top 5, but hip hop is so subjective that really isn’t up to me. All I can do is make sure I don’t waste any chance I have to show and prove that I’m one of the best. Some of my other goals is to have multiple albums out with Big Boi from Outkast and have songs with Childish Gambino and Ludacris. I want to continue making music with the people that influenced me to make music. And IDK if I’d call this a goal because I’m ok if it doesn’t happen at all, but I’d also like to sign to E40 and become the greatest rapper he’s ever had under his wing.
What key artists and or producers have you had the opportunity to work with ? What do y’all complete? (tape, songs, tours)
I’ve worked with Self Provoked. He is a big time LA rapper, verified and all. I was the only one on his album “Full Fridge”. I’ve worked with Eskupe, a big producer in LA. I was the only rapper with multiple songs on his debut album “Drum Cartel”. Self Provoked is also on that album. I also have two songs out that I released with him, and I also have a project’s worth of beats from him that I haven’t used yet. I have over a albums worth of songs with the hip hop bay area legend Keak Da Sneak. Some released, some aren’t. These songs have even ended up on Spotify playlist. He invited me to his 45th birthday celebrations, and in the future, he and I will have multiple projects done together. That is confirmed. I worked with the legendary producer Traxamillion before he died, and I’m one of the only humans on the planet who still has some unreleased material from him, and I have keak on one of those beats. I got multiple songs with the legendary Stresmatic from the group “The Federation”. He was recently on the Mount Westmore (snoop,ice cube, e40, and too short) album. He is always featured on E40 and Snoop Dogg albums, and he is one of the people I can ask for advice from. I’ve worked with Jaytekz, a viral Chicago rapper, and I have multiple songs with Silver Skye, a famous singer from Oregon. I’ve worked with AC from the bay area famous “Slappin in the Trunk” albums. I’ve worked with the super hip hop legend Mistah F.A.B . We did a song called “Fly Girl from San Jo,” and it was produced by Mistah F.A.Bs producer BPM, and I added the legend Keak Da Sneak on it. Spotify still is putting it on playlist. And fab x keak is a bay area classic formula that was on my bucket list. I’ve went on tour with the Luniz and even was out of state with them in places like Oregon. I did the northern California leg of the Dizzy Wright tour that had jeff turner on it. I’ve opened up for E40, baby bash, WC, Nipsey Hussle, YG and DJ Mustard, the federation, Lil Pete, Devin the Dude, and baby gas.
What is your fan base presents across social media, and what key elements helped you get seen by your fans?
I have the biggest mix of people when it comes to my fan base. I got everyone from firemen and lawyers to gang members and whores. I got the most intelligent side of black America, but I also bring out the homies. I have fans that are shy rich white people from even Australia, the most country white people. I got all types of Hispanic and Asian fans. I bring in fans from literally 14 to 60 because music with soul don’t have a age limit. I also bring a equal amount of men as I do women, and tons of couples come to my shows. That’s also probably why I have such a good mix.
Instagram: @green_mischief
YouTube: @Green_Mischief
