Born Angelo Dupree Taylor, September 25th, 1998.. It all started in 8th grade for Max Venus. With a $70 microphone & a laptop in his mom’s basement, he began his music career. Max released his first ever song titled ‘Swag Doctor’ under the name ‘A. Dupree’ with his friend Marques, in 2011. From that point, Venus began evolving in his music. A lot of times he would do remixes to songs by Lil Wayne, Tyga & Wiz Khalifa. In 2014, he then began working with a producer named Nate Rhoads, which led him to drop his first ever mixtape titled ‘Sapphires On Venus’ that he recorded in his basement. It was after this project that he channeled his inner zodiac & decided to change his artist name from A. Dupree to Max Venus. The reason behind it was that he wanted to have a name that was meaningful not only to him, but to his artistry. The name comes from his zodiac traits as a Libra with the ruling planet being Venus. After researching more into the planet, he discovered there was a mountain range on the planet called Maxwell. That is when all the pieces came together.In 2015, Max released a project titled ‘G Rated’ under his new artist name. He showcased a versatile flow, his skills with wordplay & lyrics & a new craft he was developing as he created the project, producing.
After Venus mastered the art of production, he still felt he needed to take his craft to another level. He went out & bought Pro Tools, a software every industry professional uses to record & mix music. With the help of his mentor Xavier Davis aka ‘Boozilla’ the owner of DIA Studios, he learned to record & mix his own music.
In 2016, Venus graduated from high school & began putting a lot more focus into his music career. He released a project titled ‘Revolution’ in which he covered topics of the struggles of being African American in America. He did several shows & performances throughout the year including opening up for artists Trill Sammy & 2 Milly. He then formed a collective called OuterZone, whom he had many artists apart of until members of the group decided to go down their separate paths. Once that didn't work out, in 2017 Venus decided to stick with his partner & cousin Jasew, to release their first collaboration project titled ‘SUN’. The entire project was produced, recorded & mixed by Venus himself. He then released a project in 2018 titled ‘13th Dimension’ everything produced by him. He followed up dropping a video to his song ‘Portalz feat. JaSew’ from the EP.
In 2019, Max released a project on his birthday titled ‘Clarity’ with everything recorded, produced & mixed himself.
After Venus mastered the art of production, he still felt he needed to take his craft to another level. He went out & bought Pro Tools, a software every industry professional uses to record & mix music. With the help of his mentor Xavier Davis aka ‘Boozilla’ the owner of DIA Studios, he learned to record & mix his own music.
In 2016, Venus graduated from high school & began putting a lot more focus into his music career. He released a project titled ‘Revolution’ in which he covered topics of the struggles of being African American in America. He did several shows & performances throughout the year including opening up for artists Trill Sammy & 2 Milly. He then formed a collective called OuterZone, whom he had many artists apart of until members of the group decided to go down their separate paths. Once that didn't work out, in 2017 Venus decided to stick with his partner & cousin Jasew, to release their first collaboration project titled ‘SUN’. The entire project was produced, recorded & mixed by Venus himself. He then released a project in 2018 titled ‘13th Dimension’ everything produced by him. He followed up dropping a video to his song ‘Portalz feat. JaSew’ from the EP.
In 2019, Max released a project on his birthday titled ‘Clarity’ with everything recorded, produced & mixed himself.
- In June of 2019, Venus had the opportunity to perform a song for Dreamville's A&R, Matt McNeal & receive feedback & constructive criticism on his next steps to elevate his career.
DISCOGRAPHY
PROJECTS
Sapphires On Venus (2014)
G Rated (2015)
The Messenger EP (2015)
Revolution (2016)
SUN (2017)
13th Dimension (2018)
Diabolical (2018)
Clarity (2019)
Manipulation (2020)
Growing Painz (2020)
25 (2021)
The Dark Poet (2022)
Forged in Fire (2022)
9 Gearz (2022)
The Dragon’s Lair (2023)
PERFORMANCES
Roxy Theatre (May 2016)
Roxy Theatre (June 2016)
Roxy Theatre (June 2016)
KMG Boulder (July 2016)
Denver Art Society (December 2016)
KMG Boulder (May 2017)
Cervantes Masterpiece (July 2017)
Roxy Theatre (July 2017)
Roxy Theatre (May 2018)
Cervantes Other Side (June 2018)
Herman's Hideaway (September 2021)
Loaded (February 2023)
Marquis Theater (July 2023)
Sapphires On Venus (2014)
G Rated (2015)
The Messenger EP (2015)
Revolution (2016)
SUN (2017)
13th Dimension (2018)
Diabolical (2018)
Clarity (2019)
Manipulation (2020)
Growing Painz (2020)
25 (2021)
The Dark Poet (2022)
Forged in Fire (2022)
9 Gearz (2022)
The Dragon’s Lair (2023)
PERFORMANCES
Roxy Theatre (May 2016)
Roxy Theatre (June 2016)
Roxy Theatre (June 2016)
KMG Boulder (July 2016)
Denver Art Society (December 2016)
KMG Boulder (May 2017)
Cervantes Masterpiece (July 2017)
Roxy Theatre (July 2017)
Roxy Theatre (May 2018)
Cervantes Other Side (June 2018)
Herman's Hideaway (September 2021)
Loaded (February 2023)
Marquis Theater (July 2023)
Interview with Max V (12/2019)
· How do you approach songwriting and what influences you?
My first step is to find a beat that vibes & matches the emotion I’m feeling at the time. Depending on the cadence of what I'm hearing, I begin to create concepts & topics of what message I want to speak upon. I then process how I am going to portray this message to my audience so that they not only hear the story, but also how they can connect & relate to it as well. J. Cole is someone who is probably my biggest influence when it comes to music & reality. He’s always used his humble spirit, wisest of words as a tool to guide & empower people instead of a weapon to destroy & I aspire to be like that someday.
· What is your philosophy on music today?
My philosophy on music is that you should always stay true to yourself. I grew up in a generation where music was supposed to make you feel something, whether that emotion is happy & you want to dance or sad & you want to cry & let go of everything you’ve been holding in. Music is supposed to create an impact on how you view the world, people & yourself.
· Tell us about you, when did you begin writing songs?
I began writing songs when I was 11 years old. I didn't fully understand the entire process of what makes a song complete. My older brother from another side in the family would rap & go to the studio a lot & show my family what he created. He actually wrote a couple verses for my other brother to rehearse so they could get on a track together but he never took it seriously. I would take the lyrics wrote on paper from my brother’s room & bring them with me to elementary school & rehearse over & over all day. One day my brother who wrote the verses came over & I showed him I had been practicing the lyrics. He told me that I had potential (I was only 9 at the time) & that I needed to start writing my own lyrics. So in 8th grade that’s when I took things more seriously & began writing my own songs. At that point though, it was all about having catchy hooks & punchlines so my caliber of bars were not where they are today.
· How many projects are you currently involved in?
As of now, I have worked on & released 8 projects starting from 2014. I have 2 collaboration projects titled ‘SUN’ & ‘Diabolical’ produced by myself with my cousin; Javier Seward aka JaSew. I have 3 projects I plan to release in 2020.
· What do you want out of life?
I want to be the best father I can to my son & turn my dreams into reality.
· What are the most important lessons you think you learned so far?
Always put your needs before anyone else’s & Know. Your. Worth. Don’t settle for less than you deserve & always strive to become the best version of YOU.
· Where do you want to be in the future?
I want to live up to my fullest potential & improve in every aspect of my life. Ultimately I want to be at peace with where I'm at. Career wise, relationship, mentally & physically. I just want to be happy. You only get one chance at life & intend on living it to the fullest.
· How many of your songs are instant songs and how many are channeled?
It just depends honestly. Some days I'm pushing out 3-4 songs a week. Some days it’s 1 song I’ve been working on for a week or two. My biggest part of my element is to not force my creativity, to instead, let it come naturally because I feel that is when you are at your best.
· Tell us about your latest project?
My latest project ‘Clarity’ is a 5 Track EP outlining where my mindset is currently at. I cover a lot of personal issues I'm dealing with & how I am fighting the demons I still have on my shoulders. It’s like a prequel to my next project ‘Manipulation’ coming out in 2020.
· What are your long term goals?
Long term, I always told myself in 5 years or sooner I want to be on major radio stations & touring the world spreading my message & engaging with my fans. My biggest goal is to perform at Red Rocks.
· How did you get into the music?
I’ve always had a strong connection to music. It’s always been a way for me to express myself & I remember always getting goosebumps whenever my favorite songs would come on. What inspired me to create my own music was watching Wiz Khalifa’s ‘Day Today’ videos on YouTube. Seeing the environment & atmosphere he was in as an artist & the influence he had on people always intrigued me & led to me pursuing music.
· How long have you been performing?
I have been performing since May of 2016. Since then I have performed 5 times at the Roxy Theater, twice at KMG Boulder & once at the Denver Art Society, Cervantes Masterpiece & Cervantes Other Side.
