“Growing up in LA, as a poor immigrant boy, I struggled to find solace in a world surrounded by drugs, gangs, and graffiti. Then I discovered the power of poetry.”
Drawing inspiration from childhood experiences of growing up in a poor LA neighbourhood without adequate resources, hip-hop/poet KingRAY continues to connect people with the resources they need to succeed. His pioneering new music genre, ‘Self Development Music’ is all about inspiring and empowering young minds, just as poetry and music did for him.
One of his songs, “Sleep Song,” was born from a fundraising event that raised over 38,000 dollars for homeless children in San Francisco, and he continues to create children’s music for charitable causes.
You describe your journey as one from poetry to spoken word, then floetry to rap, tell me more?
“I started with poetry when I was in middle school to express my feelings about a person I was attracted to. And then eventually I started to realise that it was a good way of getting my feelings out, which is something that I wasn’t used to. I was the youngest child with two older brothers and a mother and a father that were always out working – they had at least two jobs each. So, I was raised by my older brothers who were up to no good, and were into drugs and gangs, so I really didn’t have anyone to talk to or share my feelings with. Finding poetry was a relief, it was awesome to be able to get some of the weight off my chest as a form of self-expression. I didn’t even share it with anyone! I later joined a music group as a poet, and they started teaching me how to transform poetry into spoken word, floetry and then rap.”
Tell me about the inspiration behind your children’s music
“In elementary school, growing up in a poor neighbourhood meant we didn’t have the necessary schoolbooks to do our homework and we would have to share with three other children, meaning we only got to do our homework every third day. That was the beginning of it. Then once I got into college, I realised that all the resources we needed were there, it’s just we weren’t aware of them. That is why I decided to get into marketing. I wanted to be the person to connect those dots, join the resources with the people who needed them. My mission is to inspire and empower young minds, just as poetry and music did for me when I was growing up. ‘Sleep Song’ is the result of a fundraising event where we raised $38,000+ for homeless children in San Francisco. That was my first experience creating music for a charitable cause. I was immediately hooked!”
So why do you continue releasing very personal tracks on Web3?
“I want to help musicians because music helped me, kept me off the streets and helped keep me sane. I realised that I could help other people do the same if I gave them the opportunity. I was lucky to have friends that were involved in music and had recording microphones and a spare garage etc. So, I want to spread that wealth which has led to Web3 where I’m hoping to continue to expand my marketing skills and further help musicians spread their message. Web3 artists are about more than just music or art. They support causes, give back to their communities, and use blockchain to make the world a better place. Web3 is about people coming together to create something meaningful that will last for generations to come.”
How do you keep so positive?
“I absolutely love nature, anything green, the sun, the water, going on hikes, exercising in nature, it’s the best thing in the world. I also do a lot of mixed martial arts which I find very therapeutic. I’ve quite literally been punched in the face and have been able to keep my calm, keep my cool and continue pushing past the obstacles that are in front of me. And that’s another thing that I believe makes me so resilient and positive is knowing that I can take a punch to the face literally or physically and I will survive.”
Any advice for emerging artists growing up in L.A?
“Surround yourself with the type of person that you want to become. They say that you are the average of five people that you hang out with. So, make sure that you have a good group of five people that have the skills, qualities, ambitions, and mindset that you either have, or want to have. That way you can hold each other accountable and grow together. Yeah, simply surround yourself with the people that you want to be!”
KingRAY’s new drop ‘Money Magnet’ is produced by Aaron The Degen and comes with super-hot remixes from Nandi Flipzz and Aaron The Degen himself.
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