Arnold T. Pants has a nice interview with Sage Francis at Baller Status.  In particular, he talks about establishing himself as an independent artist in Rhode Island:

Being an MC from Providence, Rhode Island with little to no connections to the industry…it seemed impossible to make any headway, or become known outside my tiny area. But, I just went at it. I was just making music for myself, my friends, whoever would listen. I stumbled upon the hardcore scene in the mid-90s, and they showed me the way as far as f— waiting for a label or anyone else to put you on. If you want to make music, and you believe in it strong enough, you really just need to take the bull by the horns and push it and do it yourself…Having some business savvy and just investing in yourself, it’s financially scary for a lot of people, but it worked out.

I made as many tapes as I could afford and sold them, I couldn’t make enough. CD-R technology came and I used my radio station to burn that sh–, always trying to find ways to cut corners as far as expenses go, while still making profits on my investments in myself. It was a snowball effect; it got bigger and bigger and bigger. Thankfully, free file sharing came about via Napster online, and that’s how without any big money marketing behind me, I was able to reach all corners of the world. All of a sudden people in Sweden and California and Canada, everywhere, people were able to access my music and share with their friends. Then my name became more and more popular. Then I was able to do shows in all these various areas.

Lots of other good stuff there.