This young rapper from Elsies River is making a name for himself in the United States.
Tevin Mike Donson, aka Underrated, is going worldwide with his new international collaboration, titled Trophies, with Brooklyn-based artist Lyrical Young Lo.
Tevin, 25, recently moved in with his grandparents in Eersterivier.
He reveals that coming from a home with an abusive father fuelled his passion for writing: “People used to ask me why do I have a scratch on my back, neck or face at school, then I had to make up stories until I started putting my life on paper.
Collaboration: Lyrical Young Lo.
“I’d record it because this was my evidence for when he somehow would kill me.”
Tevin, who began rapping in primary school, started performing his songs on Instagram videos.
This is where renowned record music producer and CEO of Connecxion Music Records, Lawrence Michael Mufuzi, better known as Tiino, discovered him.
Tiino felt his talent would be well suited for a track they did in 2016 called Preach For Me.
At the time, he signed to the record label with Connecxion Music Records and released his very first official radio single from his debut album, titled Hayisuka, featuring Bman.
“I also released a single on the 21 January, 2020, a day after my birthday actually, and the feedback has been off the hook,” says the gladdebek rapper.
“Just a few weeks thereafter on the 4th of February, the producer/sound engineer who co-produced the American female artist Nicki Minaj’s song, titled FLY, featuring Rihanna on her Pink Friday album, played my latest single in his studio in Houston, Texas.
“ At that point, I felt like I achieved something great... I did not know how my song reached international air so quickly.”
The new song, Trophies, is set to release on all digital platforms next month.
Being thousands of miles apart, Underrated and Young Lo recorded the track via email.
“We never got together, we working via email. He sent me his verse, I sent him the beat and he recorded it and reverted,” says Tevin.
“We met on Instagram and got to know each other’s background and he asked me the same thing.
“I guess we clicked, not only musically but as humans.”
venecia.america@inl.co.za