I used to want to be like the other kids... When you grow up as an outsider, it’s easy to succumb to that type of mindset. However, the older I grew, the more I began to realize how different I really was from my peers. While most of my friends were active in sports, I was heavily engaged in the arts – I willingly performed at family parties and school musicals, I had a passion for drawing and writing poetry, and by the end of elementary school, I was writing my own lyrics to my favorite Hip-Hop instrumentals.

I was never popular. How could I be when I was so different, you know? Raised on Staten Island, it’s sad to say, but it was a task for the other kids to accept anything else but replicas of themselves. Everything was about being tough and looking cool. My discovery of my love for Hip-Hop did that for me. Self-expression helped me feel tough, cool.. and untouchable. Once word had gotten out about my free music online, I developed this burning desire to keep on creating; so I did…

Fast forward to college years – I was collaborating and producing beats for local artists while working on perfecting my own sound. These years were the toughest because of the contradicting pressure from my parents to be a scholar and my undying love for my craft. Once again, I felt verrrry different. Call me stubborn, but I always hated sitting in class knowing that those hours spent could’ve either been spent in my basement, working on new music or working to make money… So I dropped out… 

I then spent my days working multiple double shifts per week at a job that I disliked… I became tired. Consumed. I was also dating, so time for nurturing my creativity felt more limited than it did in the classroom. After months of feeling rundown and just uncertain about my place in life, I decided to quit my job with no second thoughts. With some money saved up, I woke up every morning and treated music and entertainment as if it were my day job. I spent time strategizing and writing a hell of a lot. As momentum picked up, so did my confidence. Once I started putting my positive creative energy out into the world, I swear, things then just started falling into place.

Since then, I’ve written songs for VH1/Viacom, I’ve worked closely with legendary Hip-Hop names like AZ and Ty Fyffe, I’ve worked as an actor on numerous television shows and a handful of movies, I’ve had voice commercials air on Hot 97 and Power 105.1, and more recently - I signed a deal with Warner Music Philippines. 

Back when I was a kid, I never thought any of this was attainable… The happiness. The freedom. But that was because of the naysayers. Once I realized that self-doubt was my only enemy, I began to work more diligently. Effortlessly. I began to create with purpose. The moment I started to believe that I could achieve anything I set my mind to was the moment I solidified what sets me apart from the rest…

Delly