Plan B- a life journey- LJ Henshell
Thunder Bay Hip Hop artist “Plan B- Da Infidel”, Ben Murray, knows what it means to make bad choices and fall on tough times. The 22-year old musician has been through a lot in his short life, from issues with the Social service system, drugs and the long road to recovery he’s come out ahead and is now making a name for himself as a sober artist with potential.
Murray’s love of music started at an early age, his passion for hip-hop began after he found a Cypress Hill CD when he was 13-years old. “I found that CD outside my house, put it in my CD player and I was hooked” said Murray in a 2009 interview for Confederation College, unfortunately for Murray hip hop was not the only thing he became hooked on.
After developing his music skills at a young age, he began performing at local shows at the age of 11. Murray says his stage name, Plan B, comes from a time where he says, “I felt my plan-A had failed me and plan-B was where I was at and it’s working. And the infidel, if you look up the meaning of the word it’s someone who has no belief in anything.” This lack of belief in anything helped push Ben towards the more negative side of the music business during an already difficult time in a young mans life.
At the age of 14 Murray dropped out of school to pursue music full time stating that he could learn on his own and school bored him. The choices he had made at such a young age left his life in a downward spiral that included violence, crime, and hard drugs, financial issues and led him away from the music he loved so much. These choices took a bright young man and created a very different person from the excited 13-year-old who found a hip-hop CD by chance.
After years of partying and living the hard life, 20-year-old Murray overdosed on opiates and almost died, this changed his way of living and what he wanted for his future. He began a drug treatment program and decided to get his life together and go back to his first love, music. Years of hard drug use had taken a toll on the young man, he ended up relying on Social Assistance, developed severe dental and health issues and at the age of 22 had most of his teeth pulled and is being fitted for dentures. He’s been clean for almost three years now and is now becoming healthy once again.
He began performing once again after a three-year absence from the music scene and is happy to be working on and recording his music once again. “I do it just to stay alive, I do it to feel free, I do it to get fulfillment, I guess. To get a sense of completion” said Murray who’s future plans include a tour to the Hastings area to perform before heading back to school next year to attend the Personal Support Worker program at Everest College.
