Check Out Hysteric’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hysteric.  

Hi Hysteric, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
It’s always hard to point exactly where I began, but it’s a good mixture of heartbreak and newfound interest! I had wrote a rap or two in middle school–just being a young black kid in the city–it was about fun (laughs). Nothing serious. In 2012, I watched the BET cypher with Eminem and Slaughterhouse. I was really inspired and decided to write some rhymes with intention. I was also inspired by my friends Ace Bugey and AyyeOhhTwo in college. It took some time to improve my skills, so I spent my 5 years in college dropping some mixtapes (Party Favors, Bedsheets 1, Nothing Is Wrong) and doing open mics at Baltimore Gallery and other areas. 

Once I graduated college in 2017, I decided that I would take music more seriously. Together with my friends from college/high school, I made Bedsheets 2. At the time I was performing at Pros Studios on 6 miles (hosted by Shizzmane). Bedsheets 2 and the song ‘Denzel’ in particular had a lot of hype around the local Detroit area. The listening party I through featured artists from the tape and it was insane! 

After some time in 2019, I was encouraged by a friend to participate in the Friday Night Cyphers hosted by DJBJ, it was a great experience and I met a lot of cool artists (CORE!!). After battling in the lobby for 10 Fridays in a row, I was accepted into the “Core” at the HOT 107.5 station. Essentially this implied that I no longer had to battle for my spot on the radio, and it was a brother/sisterhood. I got to meet Vezzo, Zaytoven (whom put me on his Instagram the night he saw me), SnappDogg, DDG, and a plethora of other artists. During this time until 2020, I had dropped two more tapes: The Last Balloon and Caught in The Present. 

Once COVID hit in 2020, I decided I could become a more efficient musician by learning to produce my own beats and become an audio engineer. My next idea was to move downtown and build a home studio at my loft. From the years of 2020-2022, I did not release any music. At times it was depressing because I felt as if my skill level in producing would never catch up to the lyrics. Through some determination, prayer, and developing a strong circle, I pushed forward and eventually released my album ‘Good Luck with That’ this year. The 8-track album is completely produced, engineered, and written by myself! 

With the release of my album, I also now throw my own open mic at Filthy Americans, a clothing store owned by Grammy-nominated Filthy Rockwell. They occur every 3rd Thursday of the month, and we always feature visual artists, have drinks, and vegan food. It’s a great opportunity for artists to get their name out and perform for the locals here in Detroit 🙂 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The road is never smooth (laughs) well, it is sometimes. A lot of my struggles were internal. Not only becoming my worst critic but my worst enemy as well. Once I allowed compassion of the self to my daily routine, I got over a lot of issues that bothered me. Nothing truly is ‘bad,’ things are happening for the greater good, and I was improving. Slowly but surely. 

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
As a young boy until now, I always loved to draw. Once the iPad came out, that was a game changer! I started to do my own cover/album art for my music projects. 

YouTube videos were another passion of mine when I was in high school. My channel was based around music and trending topics. Jamal and LaJuan, my cousins, would make videos with me sometimes, and we edited our own footage. Eventually, I decided to stop, but I learned how to video edit throughout the process. 

My journey with HipHop peered the corner in 2012 but was taken ‘seriously’ in 2017. Currently, I am my own MC, producer, and audio engineer. I also am a computer engineer by profession. 

Any big plans?
Personally, I look forward to view how I can improve with my newer outlook on things. The pandemic and my internal struggles may or may not have stunted me in the past. Current me is looking forward to interacting with myself, and others with kindness/thoughtfulness. These days I have much more energy and ideas! If I’m lucky, I’ll release a few more times this year. I also look forward to traveling elsewhere and performing. 

Pricing:

• Beats – Starting at $100. Exclusives only.
• PopOutThursdays – $10 online / $15 at the door

Contact Info:

• Website: www.hystericvl.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/hystericvl
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/hystericvl
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/hystericvl
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAIuIxyUvaeK71OJI-YXRUA
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@hystericvl

Image Credits
@young_fresh08
@raymundomontesofficial