Hip hop artist

BRIAN ELLIS is a 21-year-old junior at Berklee College of Music, majoring in music synthesis and the music business. He's from Weston, Conn.

''Music has always been in my household. I got into my dad's soul and rhythm and blues records when I was 8 or 9. I rap and I write hip-hop music. Right now, I'm doing an internship and going to school. I'm interning at Traffic Entertainment, a hip-hop label based in Quincy. I do everything from handling shipments to listening to albums and picking out singles, to putting promotional material in the CDs.

''I do a whole lot of performing at school. There's not a lot of rappers there, so I get called on to perform. There's a lot of talent there; it ranges from jazz to rock to techno to hip-hop. With rock and jazz, you can get gigs at a lot of different places. There are plenty of spots around town to do it. But for rhythm and blues, it's harder.

''As far as hip-hop goes, I think it's an issue of club owners opening up to it. Unless you have a big name and a band, it's very hard. But I think it's beginning to open up some. I perform at All Asia and the Middle East, both in Cambridge. I do a lot of improv. It's fun. I'm a college kid. I'm not a hard gangsta rapper, and I'm not a jewelry-wearing kind of guy. My whole vibe is light-hearted, goof-off. I try to play gymnastically with my songs.

''I hope I can make a living off this someday. My dream job is not to work in a cubicle. I know I can't stick to just rap; I'd go broke. I'd like to also produce, mix, write, and arrange music. If that doesn't work out, I have a backup plan. I'll try to design patches for keyboards or work for a company that deals with licensing -- the use of other artists' songs and hip-hop records. I'm producing an album called 'Late Pass.' I hope it will come out in September.

''It's pretty likely I'll stay in Boston at least the first year I'm out of school. I'll have to see where I am financially. I like the city. I like the fact that it's a metropolitan area but not so engulfing that you get lost in it. I can walk down the street and see people I know. It's an ideal place if you're young. There's a lot of college kids who are open to more experimental ideas as far as music goes. . . .

''I transferred from a school in North Carolina, where there's Southern hospitality. Coming up here, I didn't know if people were going to be standoffish. But they were more open than I thought. The majority of those I've met have been really cool. Racially, it's the same all over America. I learned that at a very young age; people will grab their purse closer, or store owners watch more carefully when I'm around. Boston is no better or no worse.

''I live in an apartment in Brighton with two friends; one plays the drums, one plays guitar. We pay close to $700 each, which doesn't include electricity. It's expensive for everything here -- I remember the first time I took a cab, the first time I got my hair cut. It's like you can't do anything for under $15, and I'm a 99-cent-store kind of guy.

''How hard is it to get a decent job in music here? You can find gigs, but the question is, can you make a living? For me, it might be easier because there are not as many rappers here. People need to think beyond the CD. Musicians often don't think about shows and merchandising.

''If I don't make it in Boston, I'll probably try Atlanta. It's not so big a market that you get lost, or so small that you can't make it. New York and LA are totally saturated. I wish the club owners here would give hip-hop more of a chance."