Fresh off the release of his debut mixtape “Live From Niagara Falls”, UCF student Brad “Bezz Believe” Markovitz is making a name for himself, and turning into a local rap-superstar in the UCF community.
You might have seen him on KnightNews.com freestyling about random students around campus, or you may know him from his official UCF anthem “Black and Gold” which samples the popular Wiz Khalifa song.
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Bezz Believe, who grew up in South Florida, is a senior majoring in interdisciplinary studies. He has been listening to rap music since the age of 10. He decided to take the fall semester off from school to focus solely on making music and promoting his new mixtape. He said that he does plan on going back to finish his degree after the mixtape reaches as many people as possible.
Bezz Believe recently shot parts of the music video for his lead single “The Rhythm of the Knight” in Memory Mall to show all the UCF fans tailgating and enjoying themselves before the UCF football game on September 10. The 22-year-old rapper said he is planning to shoot music videos for every song on the mixtape.
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He is gaining a lot of popularity in the Orlando area, especially on UCF campus.
“Pretty much everywhere I go now, there’s at least some people that know me,” said Bezz Believe. “That’s definitely cool, and it shows that all our hard work has been paying off.”
Bezz Believe’s biggest fan and supporter is his brother Doug “D-Fresh” Markovitz, who graduated from UCF in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in business. Doug, 23, is using his degree to handle the business side of things and make connections that can eventually help them.
After the mixtape was released, the brothers have mainly been focusing on promoting the mixtape and getting people to listen. They believe that once people listen, then they will realize Bezz Believe’s talents.
“Our strategy is just flood the block and get as much CDs and content out there as we possibly can,” said Doug. “We want to get people to listen and realize that he is not the average rapper out there and that’s pretty much what you got to do. Just put it in everybody’s face until they just listen.”
“There is like a million people rapping but there is a difference between people who are doing it and the people who are really doing it,” said Bezz Believe. “Like, this is our life, as you can see.”
Doug enjoys every minute working with his brother and is looking forward to seeing what the future holds for him.
“I can’t ask for anything better. I love every day waking up and just doing music and it’s great,” said Doug. “I don’t see a peak anytime soon. Maybe a peak in Orlando where we reach a point to where everybody knows us, but in terms of a peak nationally it’s going to keep growing. He’s probably at like five percent of what his market share can be.”
Doug also started an entertainment company called Doin’ Big Things Entertainment to promote the movement.
“Doin’ Big Things is a positive way of looking at things,” said Doug. “It’s really whatever you want to do in your life. It’s a way of life to us, and our motto. We’re always looking at stuff positively. It’s striving for the ultimate goal that you want to reach.”
Many people see Bezz Believe around campus passing out his mixtapes, but that’s not all he is working on. Bezz Believe is currently in negotiations with Sony about a distribution deal that will hopefully get him some radio play. This is where the connections can come in handy.
“I don’t make music for the money, but we obviously have to make money from it in order to keep it up and give fans content and reach audiences,” said Bezz Believe. “So we are really working on avenues to start generating profits and expanding it.”
For his next project, Bezz Believe will be looking to show his mature side by adding a message to his songs.
“The last project was a masterpiece in my book, but the next project is a lot more mature,” said Bezz Believe.
“I really want to spread a more positive message towards the world and set change rather than just being a straight lyrical monster. I’d like to spread more of a message right now because there’s really nobody doing that.”
Bezz admits that the one thing he loves more than anything else in the rap game is overcoming challenges.
“I’m always trying to get better,” said Bezz Believe. “I love challenging myself. I get the biggest thrill when I do something that surprises me.”
Bezz Believe has already opened up for Big Sean, and on November 17 he will open up for chart-topping rapper Drake at LAX in Orlando’s LAX Nightclub.
Doug described their goals best when he said, “We’re striving to Doin’ Big Things.”
You can follow Bezz Believe on twitter @bezzbelieve69. To download his mixtape visit his official website bezzbelieve.com
