Joey Bada$$ may be a badass by both name and reputation, but that doesn’t mean he’s afraid to show his sensitive side.
The rapper has just opened up to fans via Facebook about what he calls a “devastating” moment in his life.
Using the hashtag #IUsedToFeelSoDevastated, Bada$$ relayed a heartbreaking tale from his childhood, one which eventually became a catalyst for his decision to pursue a career in music.
“I remember being a young kid and going through my parents split when I was only 5 years old. My mom was forced to work two jobs to support the two of us and I often had a lot of alone time,” the hip-hop star explained, adding that he would often be terrified sitting at home by himself and regularly come home from school to find eviction notices on the door.
“Sometimes they actually had our door locks changed on us so we couldn’t even get inside the house. It was a really devastating moment in my life. I made it my mission as a young kid that I would help my mom and pay her back somehow for all of the hard work she had done to support the two of us,” he said.
Bada$$ eventually began to turn his alone time into something productive – using it to write and record music and experiment with mixing.
“That whole process eventually turned into my debut mixtape- 1999. I recorded and pretty much mixed the whole thing within the four walls of my bedroom in East Flatbush.
“You know, who would have thought that process right there, that the Little boy went through, would have gotten him the highest selling independent rap debut of 2015, BET Nominations , a Roc Nation offer, sold out national and world tours, major label deal offers, lecturing at Ivy League Universities, and so forth…. Ever since then, we have been steady on a path on our way to greatness, and all that ever took was patience……”
The rapper is now encouraging fans to head to his website and share their own stories of feeling devastated or achieving greatness.
Bada$$’s personal revelation seems to have informed his latest single Devastated, which sends a resilient message about turning struggles into strength, although it’s unclear at this point whether it’s pointing to something bigger (say, an album announcement perhaps?).
Guess only time will tell.
In the meantime, you can catch Bada$$’s latest single Devastated, alongside his full Facebook post, below.
