Q.Shy grew up listening to and being influenced by Funk, Rock and Hip Hop. He notes Run-DMC, KRS-1, Too $hort and DJ Quik as some of his early influences. “I was into a lot of underground old school like Too $hort, DJ Quik when he was gangbanging. Prior to making music, he started out in the dancing aspect of Hip Hop, B-Boying and breakdancing, he soon began to seriously get into rhyming and MC'ing.

A move to the Bay Area sent him to Berkeley High School where he met crew members Bas-1, Mic-T, other members of Cytoplasm, and A-Plus from Hieroglyphics who used to come up to the school prior to the group’s fame. With his crew members as peers, Q.Shy started to get more involved in writing rhymes and producing music. “Bas-1 in the Outback on the SP1200 – he was instrumental in starting me producing and pumping uniqueness in Hip Hop, how you gotta be you.”

Q.Shy explains his growing interest in production with passion. “After working with the SP1200, I got introduced to the ASR-10. I made my first beat on the ASR-10 and 6 months after that I had my own ASR,” he recalls. “What I love most about the production aspect is the manipulation of sound - taking the sample a few bars or just a note, and you can really manipulate the sound with that ASR and freak it.”

His friendship with Del the Funky Homosapien helped take his production to a higher level. “I got in real good with Teren (DEL) and got a lot of literature and information on how to improve my production, books like Lies My Music Teacher Told Me and books on the art of mixing. I went into a hibernation and applied these teachings to my music,” Q.Shy explains. Since then I really submerged myself into the music production experience – producing, writing, recording and performing.”

Taking his skills to the stage has been crucial in Q.Shy’s development. He’s shared stages with some of Hip Hop’s most talented groups and MC's including the Alkaholiks', Golden State Warriors – Xzibit, Saafir, Ras Kass, Ahmad, The Afros, Hieroglyphics, The Roots, Living Legends, Kelis, Snoop, Eminem, Ludacris, Obie Trice and many more.

The future is bright for Q.Shy after taking time off to move to Germany, where he attended school and perfected his production and recording skills. He’s preparing to release his solo album “Getting Settled”. He explains the album’s title and what to expect from Q.Shy as having “nothing to do with no relationship with a woman, just getting settled in to everything I’ve been perfecting over the years. I’m settled into myself as a musician and as an artist.”