Ajax, Ontario’s main claim to fame is being home to pop punk superstars Sum-41. It’s next claim to fame will be up and coming rap superstar Peter Jackson, who plays the Blarney Stone, March 19 with Tech N9ne , Krizz Kaliko and Big Scoob and the Scalebreakers.
“I’ve always been a big fan of hip hop music. I  just started messing around with freestyling at parties. There’s definitely a lot of people doing it there, but I’m one of the first to start doing it as a career,” said Jackson who was just here last year with Naughty By Nature. Naughty By Nature also appears on his debut CD on a track called ‘Certified.’
 The 24-year-old has performed with Busta Rhymes, Classified, Naughty by Nature, Nas, Wu Tang, Youngblooz and D12 among others.
“Touring with Naughty By Nature helped me a lot. A lot of little things like how to hold the mic and stage presence,” Jackson said from Toronto where he is playing two huge shows for Canadian Music Week including headlining  the urban music showcase and performing with Tech N9ne.
“It’s all about how you carry yourself as a person. I just sat back and soaked everything like a sponge.  And they (Naughty By Nature) really took to what I was doing,” Jackson continued adding he is enjoying the tour with Tech N9ne.
“He’s got one of the greatest stage presences I’ve ever seen. It’s been great. Tech N9ne’s fans are very loyal so they’ve been great crowds and great energy. I like to see that. They’ve really taken to what I’m doing,” he enthused adding he isn’t surprised he has come such a long way in a short time.
“Not really. I’ve done a lot of stuff in a very short time, but I’ve worked very hard for everything I have. I knew when I got into it, that if I worked hard I could reach the very highest level and it could happen for me,” he continued adding he is looking forward to dropping his debut CD on May 25. He has two more songs to record for it then is good to go.
“It should be real dope,” he said adding he is set to premiere the CDs first single —  a hip hop version of Lynard Skynard’s ‘Simple Man,’ on which he is working with rock band Die Mannequin.
“She (Die Mannequin lead singer Care Failure) sings the hook. The beats are hip hop and I do the verses. I love that song. It’s got a great riff,” he said adding he was inspired to redo it after hearing another producer was doing a version of it.
“I didn’t like what he did with it. It was quite different so I thought I’d do it,” he said.
“I’ve never performed it  for anyone before, so this is a big night for me,” he continued adding as the first single, he expects it will get a lot of airplay.
“It’s not really classic rock, it’s not hip hop and I’ve got another song on the CD which is influenced by reggae.  But what I do isn’t any particular genre, it’s just good music,” he said adding he is looking forward to playing Lethbridge again.
“It’s going to be a great time. Last time, DJ Booda took care of everything and treated us well.”
 Advance tickets for the show cost $25 from Infamous, Boarderline and the Blarney Stone. the show starts at 9 p.m.