Estevan Palasquesea/Ceromundo

About the Artist

CeroMundo aka Estevan Palasquesea aka Cero aka Tio Chévere Emcee, DJ, Visual Artist, Entrepreneur   “This MC is a joy to work with because of the skill level he possesses along with his uncanny skill of being able to write dope lyrics right on the spot. If he lived in NY or California he would be slamming the airwaves with top notch Latin Hip-Hop..no doubt in my mind”  – Mellow Man Ace (Godfather of Latin Rap, Cypress Hill)   Born in Washington DC by way of Colombia/Chile is a bilingual artist hailing from PG County, MD. He is strong vocally in his music genre and has independently performed and released his own material for more than a decade. From witty lyrics that can paint vivid images of street life, immigration, to living life to the fullest his grimy, radical, Spanglish delivery can deliver a positive message or reflect on the negativity that he has experienced from the underworld. Since a young age he always had a passion for the visual arts and spent most of his summers in Miami and in Colombia. In his adolescent years he was tagging the streets "Dopey" or "Dope E" and was participating in illegal activities which ranged from stealing cars, shoplifting, assaults, and selling drugs, which lead him to drop out of high school. In December of 1995 he moved to Cali, Colombia to live with his aunt and to continue his education. While living in the "Capital of Salsa Music" a city known for its beautiful women, and the most powerful drug cartel at the time he found an escape through Hip-Hop. He didn't choose to rap, rap chose him. He attended La Ciclovia, which were block parties where local rappers invited him to rap songs in english. He sang Method Mans "Bring The Pain" in front of the crowd and they fell in love with the energy of being an MC. There he started to bootleg mixtapes when they were cassettes and translated lyrics from Wu Tang Clan, Nas, Cypress Hill, Outkast, Biggie, 2Pac, and others songs to Spanish to his friends. This allowed him to develop his own chopped up style and write songs with a Hip-Hop crew called "Buddah Bandits" a crew that consisted of mc's and b-boys. His style was raw and he chopped up Spanish with English, he went by the name of Carnicero07. He performed at the 1st Hip-Hop Festival in Cali, Colombia where we performed on stage with a machete in front of 1000's.  The group had local success by appearing on local TV shows, magazines, newspapers and performed weekly at clubs, block parties including cities like Buenaventura, Jamundi, and the Cali Music festivals. The group opened up in front of 1000's for acts like Control Machete, Aterciopelados, Sandy y Papo, and Los Generales. Inspired by Big Puns success and Cypress Hill's first Spanish album. He smuggled his experience and music back to the US to escape being drafted into the military service. Back in DC he performed and promoted a Hip-Hop Club on U ST NW called Cafe Tango. With the lack of network and music studios in the DC area, he reached out to his Colombian connections where he met another Caleño rapper based in Chicago by the name of Tragiko. By obtaining employment at Reagen National Airport, Carnicero was able to fly to Chicago every other week and the two started a group called Trafikantez under there own independent label "Smuggla Entertainment". They were one of the first artists to produce a fusion of Hip Hop with Colombian sounds and represent 2 cities, which was unheard of at the time. The group released an independent EP "De Calidad Por Cantidad" and went on promotional tours to DC, Chicago, Dallas, Miami, New York, Boston, & Puerto Rico. Their music was featured in the Puerto Rican magazine "In The House" and they shot a video for the first single "Trafiking" by Niche Studios (Big Pun Documentaries) in Queens New York. The group began a network of Colombian rappers "Locombian Connection" from Colombia to Miami to NY to Boston. Trafikantez toured Colombia and in 2004 they disbanded due to creative differences. After dropping the beef from his name, he chose to go by the name of Cero and later on adapting CeroMundo (like Telemundo his music can be informative, dramatic, and fun). Through his support from his New York peers Que-Tv records and with the guidance from Calle Cardona and Oh Incredible he began to record his 1st debut album/EP Sacrificio. He distributed the physical copies out of his trunk to local mom & pop stores while at the same time being distributed online (iTunes, Amazon, etc). The first single "Ponete Pilas" which included a heavy sticker campaign helped him get his name known on the streets. The 2nd single "Nadie Sabe Nada" was featured in the Top 10 of Hip Hop en Español charts on Batanga.com (1st Latin Internet radio). He was the 1st rapper from the DMV to represent at the 1st rap battle by Red Bull "Batalla de Gallos" in NYC. He performed at The Latin Rap Conference in the famous Whisky GoGo in Los Angeles, California. In 2008 he teamed up with DJ Cabezon (Top Latin Hip Hop Mixtape DJ) and released a mixtape entitled "Para Spanglish Marka Cero" the mixtape received great reviews and shout outs from Pitbull, Peedie Crack, NORE and caught the attention of Mellow Man Ace. The first singles included "Trapiando" and a video which was filmed in Medellin, Colombia and "Esto Ta' Pesado" a video which was shot in Miami. His music reached Mellow Man Ace (The Godfather of Latin Rap) and they recorded for Mellow Man Aces album La Familia Vol. 1 released on Latin Thug/Koch Records. CERO teamed up with Jeremy Beaver ak DJ Boom (DC's Hip Hop Museum) from Listen Vision Studios For his sophomore album "Firme y Paciente".The album features a collaboration with Mellow Man Ace , La Clicka (Medellin), and Dshon (Miami Underground artist). On this album he introduces a fusion of sounds that introduce the 1st ever Go-Go/Cumbia song and a mix of Latin fusion songs as a reminder to his Trafikantez days and his original roots. Cero later released a single "La Llorona" which was picked up by an independent film "Rock Creek" and the video for La Llorona was featured at the movies premier at American University. He released his 1st video to the single "Chicha"filmed in Langley Park (MD) by Migs (Netflix) with positive reviews world wide. He began producing a weekly podcast and streaming show with Dj Cabezon, & Fantazma. Before podcast were a household name, called "The Moliendo Mix Show" they interviewed every major Latin Hip Hop artist at the time. The podcast was popular and ahead of its time. He teamed up with one of the DMV's most sought out sound selectors DJ LOUDTONE to release "The Desprogramado Mixtape" a Free Download Mixtape for his fans.  He continues to release music and is recognized as one of of the founders of La Conekta, a open mic showcase that connected underground artists from different cities. He is a pioneer in the DMV Latin Hip Hop scene and has mentored the new generation of Battle Rappers. He is practices visual arts under the name Seven Chévere, a graphic design company based in Maryland and provides consultation to many local artists as well as provides DJ services.