Priest Da Nomad, is one of the pioneers of independent DC Hip Hop and the re-emergence of the U street arts scene in the 1990s. He first started publicly performing and rocking college parties in 1992 in DC clubs such as the Ritz, Kilimanjaro, and the Mirage, when DJs recognizing his skills started putting him on the mic in DJ booths at the height of parties! Through a then mutual manager LaMont “Monte” Wanzer, Priest battled and then got under the wing of Hip Hop icon Bizmarkie for a few years, kicking off what would be a life long relationship until Biz’s death in 2021. Priest Da Nomad was one of the first indie artists from DC to press up and release his own 12inch vinyl singles and receive mainstream mix show radio air play, without being signed to a major record label at that time. Priest made a lot of noise as a solo artist and as a member of the Freestyle Union arts organization, dedicated to elevating the art of freestyle and improvisational rhyming up and down the east coast. He was also at the forefront of the hip hop theatre movement as a member of the hip hop theatre play “Rhyme Deferred” along with now legendary actor Chadwick Boseman and Apollo Theatre Director Kamilah Forbes. Priest released a number of singles and projects throughout the span of 3 decades with numerous accolades in local press, hip hop magazines and blogs. He has been written up in publications such as the Source, Billboard magazine, Sister to Sister, Rap Pages, Blaze, Washington Post, Washington Times, and numerous Washington City Paper articles, including a cover story by now national best selling author Tanehisi Coates. Priest was also the subject of a book “Hip Hop as Performance and Ritual” by ethnomusicologist Dr. William E. Smith, which dealt with jazz and hip hop improvisation links to Africa.

Priest added recording/mix engineer to his artistic resume in early 2000s, doing a lot of engineering work under the moniker Larry “Priest” Ware; and as an engineer has worked with artists such as Raheem Devaughn, Ludacris, Dru Hill, BT, Will I AM, Bizmarkie, DJ Kool, Norman Hutchins, Nolan Williams and more. Priest has made appearances on BET’s Rap City, WUSA9 Great Day Washington and DC area mainstream radio stations WPGC 95.5, WKYS 93.9, WPFW 89.3, Sirius XM Shade 45, and Chuck D’s Rapstation platform! His 2019 album, “The Manhood Project” was extremely heralded and garnered four historic music videos which re-launched Priest back in the forefront of indie Hip Hop out of the DMV (DC, MD, VA) area. Priest followed with his “Out Da House” album in 2021, and In 2022 Priest Da Nomad celebrated 30 years of making and performing DMV Hip Hop and the release of his new “Receipts” album, in which him and the legendary DJ Kool remade his classic hit, “The Music Ain’t Loud Enuff”! The year 2023 has started off with a bang for Priest, winning a Wammie Award for Hip Hop Artist of the Year in the DMV! Priest will continue to release singles from his current Receipts album this year, as well as a long-awaited documentary on his 30 year music story and the challenges of pioneering hip hop in a city most known for GoGo music.  Priest Da Nomad continues to unapologetically represent the best of boom bap hip hop/soul music from the DMV! He is truly one of U street’s finest!