• He really is the “Heart of the Projects”

Dieuson Octave A.K.A. “Kodak Black” is one of the most prominent rappers in the game right now. His hit songs like “No Flocking” and “SKRT” off of his album Heart of the Projects, which brought him his newly found stardom. His parents immigrated to the United States from Haiti. Kodak was born and raised in a public housing project called Golden Acres. Kodak had an eventful childhood to say the least, but he has still succeeded in become a very promising rapper.

As a child, Kodak had multiple run ins with the law. Growing up without a father in the projects, Kodak learned he would have to hustle to survive. He was placed in juvenile detention three times in one year. On “Dead Time,” Kodak laments the loss of friends because he “rocks beats/[he] shed the streets/and put the pistol down.” He began rapping at the age of 12. He would rap with his cousins during elementary school. Once Kodak found his talent in rapping, he became associated with the Kolyons and started rapping with them. After his run ins with the law, he decided to put all of his time and effort into music.

Kodak’s work with the Kolyons would eventually give him the opportunity to work with A.D. Julien, the CEO of Dollaz N Dealz. Julien saw promise in Kodak that he’d never seen before. He dropped his first mixtape “Project Baby,” and the response he got from everyone locally was “overwhelming” to the point that he immediately started working on mixtape number two. “Heart of the Projects” was exactly what he had hoped for. “SKRT” was such a big hit that Drake had posted a video of himself dancing to the song, Drake being one of the world’s most famous rappers and entrepreneurs. Kodak truly rose from the bottom, hailing from Golden Acres, now moving onto a new mixtape “Institution,” and even performing at Wild Splash. Kids from the projects can now idolize his passion and hard work in becoming a top rapper.