A lifelong resident of Fresno, Jamie Nelson, better known as “Cockamamie Jamie” has made a name for himself doing solo sets and rap battles. Nelson’s eccentric onstage persona and creative showmanship will be on display at the Fusefest preshow on Sept. 11 and at Fusefest on Sept. 20.

Starting out as a Christian rapper in a youth group, Nelson already had an interest and a love for hip-hop music.

“That’s the way that that really got started, I took that rap part and it took off because I had a pastor that was really encouraging and supportive,” said Nelson.

Nelson owes a lot of his beginnings to his church and said that he believes that he may not be what he is today without it.

“My first show was at the youth group Christmas talent show and I set it up and had the sound and light guy turn off all the lights. I just stood in the back with my hoodie on and did my Christian raps with a bunch of awkward youth group kids. After that, it all took off,” said Nelson.

Although he is no longer a Christian, he still understands and appreciates the opportunities that the church and youth groups can provide.

“If that is your faith, and you want to try and be a rapper, join a youth group,” said Nelson. “You could get on stage immediately all you have to do is just say you have a rap and it’s about God, and right there you get a stage, a microphone, a PA system and people. That’s crazy, you can’t do that almost anywhere,” he said

While listening to a lot of the original west coast rap, including artists such as E-40 and Snoop Dogg he got his chance to put his skills on display during the youth group events. He credits the support that he got during and after those performance to continuing the dreams that he currently chases.

As half of the quirky rap duo “The Argyle Pimps,” along side Boney Beezly, the two rocked mics, stages and clubs for years before they disbanded in late 2011.

“I would love to do another Argyle Pimps project, before it was just too long of a gap to come back. I don’t want us to be one of those groups that come back and it’s just not the same sound,” said Nelson. “If we do do it, I would want to know that we still have that same magic spark.”

Although the two have broken up, Nelson stills holds a special place in his heart for his longtime partner Boney Beezly.

“He was an all around dude,” said Nelson. “He was going into doing some acting and stand-up, he was all over the place and he had some serious skill with that stuff and I was just a one-trick pony. That’s what I could do, I rapped.”

Jamie is never afraid to break the mold of what may be expected of him, using his comedic and storytelling style to ride the edge with his onstage persona. And never was that persona more on display than at “Chief Rocka Battle of the Chiefs”.

It was at this event, during a rap battle with Philthy Fresh that Nelson made the bold decision to urinate in his pants.

“That pee was real and no one wants to believe it, they all want to tell me that it’s not humanly possible. But it really was, it just didn’t fit inside their view of what should be done.” said Nelson “They don’t think a grown man should be peeing in his pants, but their views on that don’t matter to me.”

In the time since, multiple media outlets including TruTv and WorldStarHipHop.com have featured the video, gaining Nelson a new level of recognition that he previously had not known.

“That was one of the craziest things I’ve ever seen and it was pretty funny,” said Philthy Fresh, the opponent in the infamous battle. “But he had serious skill though.”

After winning that battle, Nelson began to accept his internet celebrity.

“The good thing about it is that it’s kind of sketchy Bigfoot-like footage so you can’t really see my face that well. So it’s not like everyone who has seen it can just notice me on the street as that guy, but when they do it gets really annoying,” he said.

On May 11, Nelson released “Survivor Series,” a nine track album filled with wondrous and over-the-top stories.

His goal in music is to perform in clubs in the United Kingdom.

Nelson is prepared to go for his dream at whatever cost, both figuratively and literally.

“I don’t have delusions of grandeur about making it. I don’t care about all of that. I could lose $1,000 and I could still say ‘I had fun,’” he said.

But fans have no need to worry because even if he can leave for his dream tour as early as 2014, Nelson still would not drop the microphone and walk off the stage.

“I’ll still keep doing stuff, because I am just like a 50-year-old wrestler,” said Nelson. “I’m just like Ric Flair, I’ll be 55 years old and still feel like I’m relevant.”