Ken’s girlfriend around that time introduced him to Lil 88, a frequent contributor behind the boards on A Great Chaos, and the nephew of 808 Mafia’s TM88, who co-produced Lil Uzi Vert’s “XO Tour Llif3” and is one of the most popular Atlanta beat makers of the last decade. At 15, Ken started to go with Lil 88 to TM88’s studio but he skipped so many school days that he was sent to a military academy. His stay was supposed to be six months, but he was kicked out after two for sneaking in a phone.
He remembers, “When I got home I just laid on the floor of my mama’s house for a month thinking about what I’m gonna do.” With Lil 88, he’d spend a lot of his downtime at TM88’s place, blasting music, usually Carti’s, from the beatmaker’s opulent speakers. He threw some of his own AutoTune raps into the mix until TM88 noticed and told him to get into the studio.
Through TM88, Ken fell in with Atlanta hip-hop royalty. “I met Ken at Thug’s house when he was like 14,” remembers JBans, a former rapper who blew up alongside Lil Yachty. “TM88 was Thug’s DJ at the time, so he’d bring Ken over there, and Thug fucked with him so hard to the point that Ken would just be over there alone.” Eventually, Ken was at Young Thug’s massive studio sessions, sneaking into recording booths when everyone else was too busy, and part of Thug’s crew during his almost nightly paid appearances at local clubs.
Do you miss those days?
“Hell nah! That shit looked fun but you had to be on point. Make sure you got that motherfucker on you! It ain’t your night!”
Around 2018, Ken started taking frequent trips to Los Angeles, staying on couches and in AirBNBs while he moseyed through clothing stores and studios. On one trip while staying at TM88’s crib, he ended up tagging along with the producer Wheezy right around the time he produced “Yes Indeed” for Lil Baby and Drake. “It introduced me to a different life,” says Ken. “Wheezy getting us steak and pasta every night! High as fuck every night! Niggas fucking a bitch while making a song!”
