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With a second-place finish (behind Midwest rapper Supernatural) in the freestyle competition at the nation's most prestigious MC seminar in 1995, this aptly named Detroit native turned Virginian demonstrated his limitless verbal potential. The first salvo fired from Mad Skillz (aka Skillz) was the single "The Nod Factor," a lengthy stanza of which appeared as a memorable Hip Hop Quotable in The Source magazine. Mad Skillz reigned supreme with his brand of harshly wicked witticisms, uncorking the type of sinister rhymes that would make a freestyle foe hang his head in shame. The consummate lyricist, Skillz mastered the unique art of the double-entendre with rhymes like "put your clothes on backwards if you feel like frontin'." The lampooning onslaught came to a head with Skillz's debut in 1996, From Where???, which called attention to the virtually untapped talent within his home state. The album featured a few gems on production from Large Professor and Buckwild and a guest appearance ...