Going by the name Young Nut, one ASU student who started rapping in his dorm room is now working on his second mixtape.
Sophomore film major Cameron Krafft said he decided to try his hand at rapping after hearing his roommate rap. He said Barrett, the Honors College offered up their support and welcomed his new hobby.
"(Barrett has) a lot of imagination," Krafft said. "They do a really good job of helping everyone kind of connect because it's such a cool community."
With a popular account on Spotify, over 31,000 listens on his hit song and a growing social media presence on Twitter and Instagram — Young Nut has growing a fan base.
Krafft said he was not happy with one of the first tracks he released, and he paid for it to be taken off of all social media platforms.
"I realized how bad it was," he said. "So I actually tried and then I bought a microphone and was like I could run with this."
Krafft said he was only working on music as a quick activity and not necessarily as a career move, but he wants to continue creating better music. He also said writing lyrics has proved to be a struggle.
"I realize every rapper is good, and no rapper is bad," Krafft said. "I will not criticize anyone ever because it’s so hard to write a rap song."
The rapper said he only started four months ago, but the feedback to his music has been quite positive.
"So far, I've gotten pretty much just supportive feedback, which is helpful," he said. "Also I would like to get fair criticism."
Krafft is currently working to release a mixtape in November and has collaborated with local artists at ASU and around the area. He said he is excited to hear the responses to his new work.
“It's a body of work that I’m proud of and hopefully people will like it too," Krafft said.
Krafft said he was approached by a producer who he has been working with on recent and upcoming projects. The producer, Sebastian Raft, said he has already been producing music for a year or so, but Krafft is the first person he's worked with thus far.
“I am very overwhelmed of all the support that we’ve gotten on the last two tracks and did not expect them to get as many listens as they’ve gotten,” Raft said.
One of the collaborators on Krafft's upcoming mixtape, is communication senior Jay Washington, known as "Lil QWERTY." Washington said he is already involved in the Phoenix music scene.
Washington said he got to know Krafft through the ASU Comedy Club, and working with Krafft has brought him a whole new appreciation for creating music.
“Working with Yung Nut has inspired me to have more fun with the process," Washington said. "Improving and impacting people doesn’t always require you to be uptight and pretentious."
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