Kay Jay

tand, all at once. When your dad leaves, with him goes your innocence. At the age of eight years old, death’s first kiss being your father leaves only so many ways to piece together a new reality. Eventually, time erodes the sharp edges and you go back to being a kid. Basketball, BMX bikes, and hanging with your friends as you grow up all start to make you feel whole again. With a sister fifteen years the elder, it was like having two moms and they made sure the future was bright. Honor roll was expected and delivered in elementary and junior high. A little kid doesn’t have an avenue of escape, but a teenager can banish the demons with a mere swallow, puff or snort. High school afforded a needed break from reality, but one that set into motion a complete collapse of everything sacred. Experimenting with drugs and hanging with the wrong crowd led to apathy towards school, skipping classes, and eventually dropping out completely. Kay Jay Parents
Mom and Sister
Decision Making Goes Wrong
At sixteen, and with a GED already in hand, the possibilities were endless. However, as they always do, drugs dull the passion and eventually wear you down and have their way with you in the end. Life became an unsustainable blur of robbing, stealing, using and dealing. Addicts make for unsuccessful criminals, and in short order, multiple cases were caught and prison became home. Even with probated sentences and a second chance, violations loomed over the next couple years as did 4 eventual years in prison. It was during this period of incarceration that the tides once again turned. Free from the drugs, a focused attention was turned back to education. The absence of all distractions nourished a drive for betterment which took the form of college classes and vocational trades. Fearing Death
With eighteen months left on the sentence, news came that mother had stage 4 colon cancer. The despair and futility of being incarcerated as the sands of time slip away on your mom can’t be adequately described. Days crawl by and the only thought is that you will not make it home in time to see your mother off. Life offers lessons in the cruelest of fashions. Thankfully, time passed and the release from prison in late November 2010 meant the worst of fears was averted. Freedom was sweet and the reunion was joyous,

but life on the outside doesn’t come easy with a felony rap sheet. Jobs opportunities were scarce, so the focus was on college, working towards a Music Business degree. The colon cancer didn’t know who it was messing with and mother battled all the way until January 2012 when she finally killed off the cancer in the only definitive way. Her death was beyond difficult. Just a week after her death, the old lifestyle came calling in the form of a home invasion where everyone at home was bound and all possessions were lost. Depression sunk in its sharp claws and the drugs came calling. This time there were no limits. The new family unit consisted of Speed, Coke & Molly. In November 2012 he came within inches of joining his mother and father in Heaven. Months of rampant drug abuse culminated in a coma spanning five days. By all accounts, death was inevitable as multiple organs were failing due to rhabdomyolysis. However, this cat had only burned through eight lives, and after 27 days in the hospital followed by a couple months of recovery, the phoenix would miraculously rise. The Wake Up Call
Once you transcend your self-imposed limits a paradigm shift occurs and the impossible becomes the ordinary, the expected. Clarity and vision take over. C10ud (Cloud 10) was envisioned in late 2012 while simultaneously going to school. The concept behind this clothing line was more of a way of life than a fashion statement. At its core, C10ud projects the mentality of staying lifted above all drama that life throws your way, which is something that now came natural in life. With C10ud’s full launch in 2014 and graduation from HCC in 2015 with an Associates in Music Business, the cogs were turning and this momentum would not be denied. The creative juices were flowing and 2015 signaled a return to the first love of music. With a limitless mind, lyrics and beats came in surges and two original projects were released within a year with major Houston artists such as Paul Wall, Z-Ro and Devin The Dude. Critical acclaim opened doors in the rap industry, as the music was innovative and fresh. Utilizing a real-life approach to writing and focusing themes on inspiration and motivation to rise in the face of adversity has served to differentiate this music from the crowd. Spring Brach ISD has even welcomed back this once banned student to speak to the kids about his story of triumph among tragedy and he jumps at the chance to give back to his community. This life has gone full circle.