Wasiu never felt like he truly fit in. Born and raised in MontrĂ©al, QuĂ©bec, the 24-year-old has endured marginalization in nearly every aspect of his lifeâfamily, race, education, classâthat has, in effect, enhanced his ability to interpret the universal themes of the world around him, and infuse them into forward-thinking narratives for the everyday human.
"Where I grew up made it so I'm able to understand things or view things from a lot of different perspectives," says Wasiu, who raps with the dexterous singsong cadence of Mos Def and the cultural omniscience of Nas. "Anyone or anything that was around me, I took it and made it a part of my personality."