Hailing from a small Midwest village in Nebraska, young Rascal Martinez began playing music at a young age. Rascal began his multi-instrumentalist career in the family basement, learning guitar and drums and playing alongside his older brother. Throughout school, Rascal continued to develop his craft and began writing his own music, which channels an eclectic mixture of Americana and Folk. Early recordings of the duo were done in the family basement using free software and a few shoddy microphone stands.
Seizing every opportunity to perform, Rascal began playing basement shows to mostly family and friends. His insatiable appetite to perform and passion for the craft grew along with his love of making people happy through his music. After graduating high school in 2012, Rascal entered college and continued writing and performing around the Midwest.
A pivotal point in Rascal’s career was back in 2011 when a Chicago Radio DJ met Rascal as he was passing through North Platte. Nate Bell had the opportunity to listen to Rascal and also receive a copy of one of the first CD’s Rascal produced, “The Long Road”. His music was a big hit and impressed the station manager, W.C. “Bill” Turk. "From the first song, I was hooked,” “Rock is replete with pretenders, borrowers and copycats, but once in a great while comes an artist who channels a spirit with a fresh yet familiar and resonant style,” Turk wrote. Rascal has been a featured guest several times over the years building a loyal fan base in Chicago. Turk, says it best, “Rascal’s music channels a mix of rockabilly, folk and country, with a subtext of Latin melodies and his vocals come up out of the Nebraska plain like cool summer swell.” Rascal’s enjoys writing his own songs but also appreciates performing the 50s and 60s timeless hits along with other genres.
Rascal continues to expand his fan base and has been traveling the US performing in many different cities for the past 18 months. He recently completed his 3rd album in Nashville, Tennessee titled “City Man”. The newly written songs feature his trademark deep, raspy voice with a folk rock sound and addictive melodies. The first song on the album, “I Wanna Fly”, speaks to all of us who are always searching for a little bit more in life, the title song “City Man”, speaks to changes in coming from a small town to the big city.
