Growing up, Armando Cadogan Jr., genuinely understood the importance of taking advantage of opportunities and the value of talent diversity. The Brooklyn native by way of Baltimore is best known for his role in the HBO Series The Wire as Bubbles’ tormentor.

Born to Panamanian parents who moved to the U.S. to provide good opportunity for their children, Cadogan took an interest in the arts. Acting and theater laid the foundation for his career. As a child, he appeared in PSA’s for middle schools that discussed peer pressure, HIV and anti-bullying. He also appeared in breast cancer awareness commercials and Maryland State Lottery commercials.

Idris Elba and Tristan Wilds highlighted the list of notable alumni from The Wire television show. Since the show went off the air in 2008, Elba and Wilds continued their successful career in acting. They also took a serious interest in music too—Elba is a successful DJ in London, while Wilds has been OWNING IT as a Grammy-nominated singer and rapper.

Honestly, there must have been something in the water in Baltimore during the taping of The Wire, because Cadogan is a lyricist himself and is focusing on his rap career. A young but seasoned vet, he credits The Wire for laying a foundation and assisting him in creating his own lane.“The Wire was a platform that was big and it blew up and opened a few doors because we had the world’s attention,” he told The Source by phone.

Going by the stage name Panama, he recently teamed with PixelMotiv Media to bring the#WopaFamily a new series which gives everyone an insight into their aspirations, inspirations and motivation behind his recent project The Panama Canal. He uses Panama as his muse in his music. “The Panamanian culture has been influencing me in everything I do,” he said.

A graduate from the University of Maryland Baltimore County, Panama acts, raps and promotes social consciousness from the lens of his Panamanian background. He runs his a production company along with Mills Miller and Kaven Brown called Mills Miller Media that creates original content. According to Panama, he’s in the process of creating some short films that you’ll see in the future.

Here’s more from Panama:

The Source: What was it like working on the set of The Wire?

Panama: Man, The Wire was family loyalty. The Wire was more of a documentary journey. The way it was documented, the way it was shot, the people that were involved. It was fictitious versus real life but it was based on a true story. Bubbles was a real character, I was a real character that used to torment Bubbles. That whole relationship between Baltimore and New York, yes it was exaggerated, that they didn’t like each other, but it happened! This show became popular with the urban community. Now that the wire came out, Baltimore is a little bit more prideful of the show, they’re more prideful of where they come from and who they are.

The Source: Who inspires you in the rap game right now?

Panama: Kanye, Jay, Drake. I take different things from different people—I like Fab’s coolness. I like that he thinks he should be bigger but he’s not chasing people down to be bigger. He’s allowing his career to manifest the way it’s supposed to be manifested. I like 50 Cent for his aggression. I like Diddy’s marketing—I like that he’s been able to stay relevant in the music industry. I take different inspirations from different people.

The Source: Why do you call yourself Panama?

Panama: I’m doing it for a group of people who are missing that void and I’m that void to give them that voice. I’m giving that voice and take that flag and put it in places where people would never know where Panama was at. When I’m on the road and performing in Oklahoma or Kansas or Mississippi or Shreveport, Louisiana, people would never know where Panama was. They’ve never seen that flag—I’m that purpose.

Make sure you download Panama’s Panama Canal Mixtape by CLICKING HERE and follow him on Twitter at @itspanamababy