Right now, you could be having class with a SoundCloud rapper. This year, two seventh grade students decided to become SoundCloud rappers by the name of Lil Turk (Ozan Cetin) and KJ (Mason Yu).
When asked why they became SoundCloud rappers, Lil Turk said, “One day KJ came to my house and we just decided to make a song. I love music and it is something I like listening to so why not make music?”
The two released “95” mid-February and have gotten over 200 plays on the song. The name 95 comes from the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls who are considered one of, if not the greatest, basketball team in history. “I wanted to shout out MJ (Michael Jordan) for all his accomplishments,” Lil Turk said.
He also mentions popular game Fortnite and playing it with “the boys.” Fortnite is a very popular video game that has become a big craze at ASL and all around the world. “Fortnite is taking over so it felt like I needed to add it to the song,” Lil Turk said.
Seventh grader Nate Lewis said the reason he likes “95” is that he believes the beat is very fun and exciting and the lyrics are fun to listen to. “It’s just really catchy and it is fun to get hyped to it.”
“I make the beats and Lil Turk and I write the lyrics. He sings them too,” KJ said.
KJ makes his beat using GarageBand. He combines and mixes sounds to find the perfect beat they are in need of.
In early March, the two of them decided “95” should go on Spotify and Apple Music. KJ got an account and shortly after added “95” to it. Despite only being on Spotify for less than a month the song already has over 1,000 plays and is definitely becoming more popular and more heard of around the ASL community.
SoundCloud is an online audio distributor based in Berlin. You can upload music and listen to music on SoundCloud. SoundCloud was made in 2007 and many up and coming rappers will release their content on SoundCloud.
KJ and Lil Turk both love music so it was very easy for them to find a role model. Both KJ and Lil Turk take big inspiration from American rapper J Cole. “I really like the meaning behind his lyrics,” Lil Turk said.
So what is next for the two rappers? KJ says they plan to release new songs and see how far they can go with it. “ At the end of the day we do it for fun but it would be cool if one of our songs got famous,” KJ said.
KJ and Lil Turk have started to work on a new song called “Richie Rich.” “It’s in the early stages and we don’t know the exact date it is going to come out but I’m really excited for the song to be released,” KJ said.
KJ and Lil Turk hope people can connect to their music and it will have meaning on those who listen to it’s lives.
