Bio

Dr. Rum was born Jernaldo H.C. Thielman in St. Maarten on October 18th, 1990. At the age of three, he developed a passion for music. He expressed this passion through live performances, school shows, and theatre plays. The stage was nothing new to him, and at the young age of five, he won his first prize for singing. He then started writing poems and love notes, and with the help of his older brother and cousin, creatively transformed them into melodies. At the age of ten he was put in charge of organizing school assemblies, plays, and shows. Then, in the 6th grade, a friend and him signed up for the ‘Open Mic Night’, winning 1st place. But he didn’t stop there, however. In [year], he entered into the Pathfinders Club Drum Band and quickly became one of the top ‘tom’ players. At the age of fifteen, he formed a music group with his older brother (Deal) and friend, D.R.C. (Done Ready Crew). The group lasted approximately one year, then one member left, leaving just the two brothers. They later recruited another friend, who stayed with the group for the following 2 years. Alone again on their musical venture, Dr. Rum and his brother struggled to release their first Mix Tape ‘Crunk in the Club’ in June 2007. That year they entered the islands’ Talent Showdown where they won 2nd place in the rapping category. Later that year, his brother left to further his education leaving Dr. Rum with no other choice but to go solo. In 2008, Dr. Rum entered the islands’ Talent Showdown for the second time, coming in at 3rd place as a solo rapper. While still attending high school, he also worked at the local radio station ‘102.7 fm’ on Wednesday nights from 9pm to 12pm where he had a live show, ‘The Weekly Local & International Show’. Not satisfied with his 3rd place position in the 2008 Talent Show, Dr. Rum decided to take his music to another level. Fuelled with musical ambition, he combined the experience and the knowledge he gained in the past years. In 2009, he entered the Talent Show for a fourth time; this time winning St. Maarten’s Best Rapper of the year. He then defended his title in 2010, making him St. Maarten’s best rapper two years in a row. That same year, he performed several opening acts for top International Artists such as Keyshia Cole, Omarion, and Rick Ross Along with “Dirtty Records”. Dr. Rum then decided to release his first mixtape ‘Tip-C’, but at that moment, school was his biggest priority. He focused on graduating from high school and did so in June 2010. After graduating, he worked on a ‘Dirty Family’ Mixtape, ‘Money Muzik’. With the ambition to become a known International Musical Artist, Dr. Rum made it his goal to complete ‘Tip-C’. He left for Europe to attend a Music Production School and released ‘Tip-C’ on November 1, 2010.