Kodak Black. Arguably the most the ingenuitive rapper off of the XXL Freshman 2016 line-up and one of the youngest rappers to make the cover to date. Having just recently turned 19, he rose to fame off of his "Skrt" and "No Flocking" singles back in 2014 when he was just 17! Born Dieuson Octave, in Pompano, Florida, he grew up in the Golden Acres projects. His parents are both Hatian, though he was raised by his mother alone. At the ripe age of 12, he found himself in the studio of his neighborhood trap house -- consumed in fantasies of gold-fronts and club-hits -- he decided that music would be where his priorities were focused.

          That's not to say Kodak didn't do a little street-corner grinding as well. By the time The XXL Freshman Cover dropped, Kodak was already celebrating his 18th birthday in jail.

          Prior to 2015, Kodak was placed in a youth detention center three times in a single year, to only then be placed on probation. By 2016, Kodak had racked up charges involving: robbery, battery, false imprisonment of a child, and possession of cannabis -- No need to worry though, #FreeKodak is set to be released from his 120 days behind bars Nov. 30th. His plea of no-contest settled what would be 55 years in jail to a year of house arrest and five years probation. 

 

Update: Kodak has been free for a handful of months and is busy four-wheeling off main roads in Miami. Doesn't seem to be too strict of a "house arrest."

 

          Kodak has released close to a handful of projects between 2014 and now, starting with: Heart of the Projects, followed by Project baby, (my personal favorite) Institution, and his most recent mixtape titled, Lil Big Pac. He has also collaborated with his idol and artistic inspiration, Lil Boosie on a track called "Viral;" and while Kodak has clearly styled his tone and vocal-aesthetic from the works of Boosie Badass, his own essence still shines through as "The Chosen One" of the projects.

          It's important to make note that his opening/title track from his debut mixtape starts with him getting shot -- claiming his rank as "The Heart of the Projects" and exposing himself as the martyr he sees himself as representing to the next generation as Boosie represented to him.

           Dirty. Gritty. Unapologetic. Aggressive. And yet still very relatable to a much wider audience than probably anticipated, Kodak Black has merged Dirty-Southern-Rap with the accumulative modern rapper's perspective and attitude. While he may sound nothing like his XXL counter parts in terms of sonic production or vocabulary, his fixations, his no-fucks-given charisma and almost juvenile recklessness and ambition toward the rap game itself, is something that can be easily seen in all other artists on this site -- specifically those from the 2016 XXL Freshman Cover.     

          Kodak predominantly raps about toting large guns, wearing expensive jewelry, driving rugged cars, and having a lack of empathy toward the women and groupies he interacts with -- everyone wants a piece of what he has accomplished and he has no problem blatantly saying, "No" or "letting them have it." However, there are always two sides of a coin, and he clearly has a love for those who peddled on the corner's with him and reps his self-titled group, "Sniper Gang" exclusively. If Dirty-Southern Rap and Drill music sipped lean in South Florida for 17 years, it would end up sounding like Kodak Black.