D12 rapper and chief Eminem sidekick Proof is out to prove the connection between Detroit rap and San Francisco psychedelia. "The mother of my manager is a Deadhead," says Proof, whose debut solo album, Searching 4 Jerry Garcia, hits stores in May. "And [the manager] just happened to have a documentary about Jerry. It just hit me immediately how interesting his life was. It ain't about selling a lot of records -- the Grateful Dead made fans feel like they were part of the show. That's, like, some 'I love my fans' kinda shit."

Searching is Proof's life story expressed through music. He uses famous names as song titles to convey various moods: "Dirty Harry" is Proof's alter ego who, he says, "comes out after a few bottles of Hennessy"; "Al Sharpton" discusses "bigotry and racism"; "Motley Crue Skit" is "kind of a puff-puff-pass song about getting high and sharing drugs"; and the album's closer, "Kurt Cobain," imagines "that final moment before you self destruct."

Most of all, though, Proof is inspired by Garcia. "I just identify with him a lot," he says. "Even the demise of his life -- with the stress, the drugs, the poor diet. That's like me -- I'm always stressin'."

AUSTIN SCAGGS
(February 26, 2003)