Charles Hamilton Returns With ‘Normalcy’

Charles Hamilton got off to a solid start in 2009, landing a spot on the cover of XXL's 'Freshman Class' issue and building considerable hype following that. But unlike his fellow frosh -- Wale, Kid Cudi and Drake -- who have gone on to bigger and better things, Hamilton hit a fast downward spiral later in the year. In addition to quickly earning a reputation as an "eccentric" personality, Hamilton got himself tangled in beef with his label mate Soulja Boy Tell 'Em, which didn't end in his favor. Interscope decided to sever ties with the Harlem native before his debut album could make it to the stores. After the much publicized dispute with Soulja Boy and being dropped from his label, Hamilton fell off the radar until he announced his return this week with a new LP, ironically titled 'Normalcy.'

To introduce the album, Hamilton took the time to pen a long, open letter to his fans explaining all the mishaps of the past year. "My time out of the proverbial limelight had many different motives," he wrote. "The first and most important was to make sure that my own sanity and health was in tact. I had publicly done several things to my image and reputation that made my very word suspect. This doesn't stop at album info or YouTube videos. Something was aggravating me on the inside, and the last thing I wanted to do was let anyone in on how I was really feeling. Anxiety about being a "top artist," the classic "I don't fit in" syndrome. Things that I thought I got over came back into my memories with a vengeance."
After waxing poetic on his troubled feelings, Hamilton finally touched on the Interscope topic, only to explain that he immediately shied away from the spotlight in order to avoid questions. "When the news broke about me being released from the label, I wasn't mad. Just frustrated at the fact I would be asked a million pressing questions about it," he wrote. "My emotions were already numb at personal stuff, and I knew that being the (insert adjective here) of the music business would make me a humor target." Hamilton wrapped up his emotionally-infused letter by letting the public know that he'd finally regained some control on his sanity and was focused on the music again. No mention of Soulja Boy, though.