OMINPRESENT RAPPER >>>

Jon Salt is a rapper that you can't nail down. You can't quite put your thumb on it. He does not sound like anything you are used to. He does not sound like he came from a specific locale or that he is even repping a certain style. He is his own. MC Salt obviously loves the great MCs of the game. You can tell he has been a student of the greats for a long time. However, Salt does not sound like he came from the East Coast or the West Coast.

This is a good thing.

Who wants to be pigeonholed anyway? Even when you look at Salt, you are not quite sure what you are seeing. He looks like he could be from anywhere and everywhere. When you listen and look at Salt, you see a mixture of places and styles. He's Hawaiian and black. He was born in Europe. He is a military brat so he has lived many places all over the globe. He has an accent - but it is just an international sounding one. You can hear Hawaiian and other far-off global tones in his speech. Listen hard enough and you can even hear a European-accent from his time living there.

With all this in mind, Salt is also extremely relatable. His music and songs have an Everyday Man's vibe that is pretty familiar. He's a little street, but not too tough acting at all. His songs are mostly about the industry and all its traps. His songs can be conceptual but not overbearing with messages. Think Atmosphere from The Hood. He has lyrics but not in a heavy on the punch line or dropping lots of knowledge tip. He is just a skilled MC who spits his rhymes crisp, loud and clear.

Salt is not one of the top or most popular local/regional artists. He was not born around here. He still is a relative newcomer to the Northwest. What he does have on his side is Itchy Records and a tight-knit family and team of manager/friends. Itchy Records and Ed Fassio have nominated Salt's single "Eyes So Low" to be in the Best Rap Performance category at this year's Grammys.

"(The Grammys) is a tiered process," explains Salt. "First the single is selected out of hundreds that applied. My single was selected as a possible finalist. So, there are no guarantees that the single will be in the running for the Grammy - but there is a possibility. I know it is a long shot. I'm in a category with the likes of Kenderick Lamar - and other top known national artists."

It is clearly Salt's team that got him the nomination - not necessarily Salt's buzz.

Salt knows this: "I freely admits I'm still trying to get to the level of Sol, Grynch or Macklemore."

Salt is taking the experience of The Grammys for everything it is worth.

"I'll be going to stay in Los Angeles for the Grammy weekend - where we'll be going to and networking at as many industry-mixers as we can."

Even just the possible nomination has given Jon's career a little boost. He has been offered more sponsorships, endorsements and contracts.  

Jon has two albums out now: My Beautiful Insanity and Darker-Side of Happiness. Give them a listen before the rest of the country does.