LVL9
Before 2018, I’ve ran into LVL9 on many occasions, usually through mutual friends. My earliest memory of him is when I was that The Forums, a student apartment complex in Denton, TX, located behind Johnny Carinos off of I 35. To my knowledge, he was there to record a song. After the initial greeting and a brief conversation, we stepped outside on the third floor balcony. Frigid winds brushed against our jackets and there was a brief struggle to ignite the blunt wrap filled with very potent marijuana, or as we like to call it, “gas”. “Before this rap shit, I was hooping” he says as he passes the blunt to the left, continuing the rotation amongst others. I noticed that he had an abundance of energy, always moving like an adolescent that had difficulty standing still. His mention of his athletic background made perfect sense to me, that or it was just a really cold night.
Another occasion when I noticed his energy was about a year ago, early January I believe. It was another cold night as I was filming a music video with Denton artists Lord Bile and J3. 9 accompanied them and also made a brief cameo in the video. It was late, a little after 10 pm. The first location for the video shoot was at the eerie bridge on Jim Christal road that sat behind the Denton Airport and surrounded by industrial warehouse buildings. Train tracks sat on the bridge, perfect for the concept for the video. Very few cars drove down this ghoulish road that didn’t contain streets lights. The walls that supported the bridge were marked with various graffiti art that proved to be a cool aesthetic to the video. During the shoot, strange noises were coming from the adjacent trees, including falling rocks and questionable noises ( I later found out it was him making those noises, he definitely has a sense of humor about him). While filming, I always saw Lvl 9 bouncing around, cracking jokes and making light of the peculiar environment we were in
Fast forward to June 2018, I’ve gotten closer to him. Finding out that he lives down the street from me made it easier to get to him on the day to day basis. Granted, if you live Denton, you are down the street from everyone…literally. Spending afternoons at his apartment with his girlfriend Mikayla playing Call of Duty, going to shows and partying, driving to photoshoot locations, I’ve developed a bond with the 23 year old artist
Born in Dallas, Tx, with his grandmother residing off of HWY 67 on Kiest and Polk, 9 grew up in Denton. “ All I ever had was my mother, I can’t even tell you what my dad looks like” . As a mama’s boy myself , I felt that in ways I’m sure he’s aware of. With that said, he takes pride in being just that, “ she’s a 69 Oakland baby, she been wit the shits. She made sure I aint go without” I haven’t had the chance to meet his mother, but from what I hear of her, she reminds me of my own mother: strong, independent woman for the the rough part of her hometown that ended being a great mother to her children. “ I bumped my head a lot trying to be a man early on in life but my T Jones was always there to ice those knots”
LVL9 has a strong music background, which makes sense as to why he has his own unique sound. “I was on my rockstar/vampire shit before a lot of these other artists out here’ he tells me as we are on our way to a local convenient store. He used to sit backstage and watch his aunt play drums for Tevin Campbell, the double platinum selling and Grammy nominated R&B artist from Waxahachie, Texas, who was prominent in the 90’s and is associated with Quincy Jones, Prince, Al. B. Sure, Babyface and Whitney Houston. Unbeknownst to me, his aunt and uncle are Yarbrough and Peoples, the urban contemporary duo from Dallas with the chart topping song “ Don’t stop the music” in 1981
The hunger and determination he possess as an artist is, in my humble opinion, truly inspirational. He is not your ordinary local artist. As he walks on stage with microphone in hand, the spotlight highlighting his blonde tipped dreads that hang just above his shoulders and his youthful facial features. His stage presence engulfs the audience with his authentic energy, the energy that I am all too familiar with.
Over the time span of 2 1/2 years, LVL9 has made a handful of connections in the industry that other hardworking artists strive for. His most notable connection was with the late Lil Peep. “ Lil Peep was in Denton out of all places and I was with him” he explains “him and Riff Raff really fucked with me, they could tell that i wasn’t on no fan boy shit.” It doesn’t stop there. LVL9 has songs with Dallas artist Tre Linno and Goth Boy Clique artist Lil Tracy, who was also a very close associate to Lil Peep. He is also associated with upcoming artist Splurge and Sensi Molly out of Arlington, WTHports from Canada and has tons of connections in California (he mentions Los Angeles as being his second home), just to name a few. Everywhere we go, from the square in the middle of Denton, to skatepark parties at Guapo Skatepark, people know who he is. The level of respect he receives from his peers is equivalent to the level of respect you would show a military veteran. Alongside with his talent, his unique sound, how well he makes connections and his dedication to music is what will take him further in his music endeavors
He has recently been released from incarceration due to an assault charge he caught in his earlier years and is currently awaiting, along with Mikayla, the birth of their 1st son together.
