ENTERTAINMENT

Tru Shane: Montgomery native 'studio junkie' has new music ahead this year

He was recently on Alabama Massacre 17, and was heavily influenced early on by West Coast music

Shannon Heupel
Montgomery Advertiser
Montgomery artist Tru Shane has new music in the works, and describes himself as a "studio junkie."

Tru Shane has only been rapping for a year, but already describes himself as a “studio junkie” who is making music and mental pictures in his own lane.

“I’m going to hit on most of the topics that most of the rap gang can say they’re hitting on,” said Shane, who was born and raised on the north side of Montgomery, near Ann Street. “But everything I talk about in my songs, I’ve done.”

Had a partner who did you wrong? Shane’ll tell you about it. “And then I’ve got some songs that you can get in your car with your homeboys and ride around with,” he said. “I got a little bit of everything.”

But he doesn’t think of his music as club music, stuff that just goes on in the background while people are dancing.

“I make music you’ve got to sit there and listen to,” Shane said.

One of his favorite artists, and a source of inspiration, is Kevin Gates.

“I look up to Gates real heavy like. I met him a couple of times,” Shane said. “Once I really dove into his music, I realized that music can be an escape. Music can be therapy for you.”

It’s also the source of a little feud over two late rap legends. Shane’s dad is a fan of Tupac Shakur, but Shane thinks The Notorious B.I.G. (Biggie) was the best.

“I grew up listening to a lot of West Coast music,” Shane said.

Tru Shane was recently on the Alabama Massacre 17 release.

He’s the only musician in his family. “My family is big on sports,” he said. “There’s a bunch of basketball players, softball players. I just never was.”

After going to school in Montgomery, Shane said he went to Wetumpka from 7th through 11th grade, before leaving and getting his GED. “My mom was living in Wetumpka at the time,” Shane said.

Toward the end of 2018, Shane left Montgomery for a while to try life in Las Vegas, where his dad grew up.

“When I got out there, I had a lot of time. I’m just sitting in my apartment. It’s just me, with a bunch of thoughts,” Shane said. “I grabbed my phone and I just started writing. Never really had plans to hit a real studio.”

When the pandemic started in on the world, Shane realized he needed to be with his family. He came back to Montgomery in February 2020, just before COVID started having a major impact here.

Once he made it back, Shane connected with longtime friend JDG, who convinced him to do a verse on a track being produced by Tiny Williams.

“I just put something that I had in my phone on it,” Shane said. “I knew it was for me when I came out of the booth because everybody was like, ‘You’ve got it! You’ve got it!’”

What Shane heard on the replay was his own mistakes, which he was ready to fix. He wanted to do more, so he went back the next day.

“Next thing I know, I’m in the studio seven days a week,” Shane said. “I actually fell in love with it.”

And with working with Williams. “Tiny is the guy,” Shane said. “I would let him tell me to change a whole song, and I would do it like that. I trust that man with everything in my music.”

In June, Shane dropped a 10-song mixtape called Tru Story, which brings in a couple of features by 2ndbloxk Qua on “Make U Famous,” and LL Lausane on “Let Me Live.” The title track’s a freestyle verse by Shane.

“I’ve got some videos coming as well,” Shane said.

He’s also on Alabama Massacre 17, released recently by Montgomery’s Noah Baker.

Shane also has more than 300 unrecorded songs that he’s eager to work on. That includes plans for a new tape he’s going to call Al Pacino. Shane’s a huge fan of the 1983 movie “Scarface.”

Before the end of the year, Shane’s planning on releasing a new tape called Life Before Death.

“It’s hard to get me out of the studio,” Shane said. “It’s hard for me to get out of the grind of it. I used to go in there for four or five hours a night and just work.”

As for live gigs, Shane said he’s pretty open. “Come book me. Come get me,” he said.

Given the chance, he’s anxious to help show Montgomery a side of live rap that the city has been missing.

“I’m just trying to kick the door,” Shane said. “If one person kicks the door in Montgomery, it gets the eyes. I love the city. I want more for the city than what we’ve got right now.”

Follow him on Instagram @tru.shane and on Facebook @shanebutt.

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Shannon Heupel at sheupel@gannett.com.