HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Rapper A$AP Rocky was found not guilty on two felony counts of assault with a firearm yesterday. Although he was mostly raised in Harlem, many may not know that the famous artist has ties to the Midstate.
A$AP Rocky, born Rakim Athelaston Mayers, explains in a Facebook video that he lived in Harrisburg when he was around eight or nine years old. He noted that he bought his first rap cassette tape at the Harrisburg Mall. Rocky says he considered buying a Mortal Kombat soundtrack CD, but his brother, Ricky Mayers, told him to buy a Rakim tape instead since they had the same name.
Rocky says his brother influenced him to begin rapping while living in Harrisburg. He became a fan of the genre, and he began learning how to blend his own style with famous rappers he admired, such as The Diplomats, Mobb Deep, Three 6 Mafia, UGK, Run DMC, Wu-Tang Clan, and Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.
“I’m so happy I listened to [Ricky],” Rocky said in the video. “I found out a lot.”
After moving back to Harlem, Ricky was killed around the corner from his apartment when Rocky was 13. Rocky says Ricky inspired him to become a great rapper. “He was like the revolutionary big brother,” Rocky said in an interview with MixMag. “He would make me feel secure, and if it wasn’t for him being able to get that confidence out of me, I wouldn’t have had the balls to discover I had a talent.”
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Despite growing up with his brother deceased, his father jailed and deceased, and his family moving between homeless shelters during his teenage years, Rocky would grow to become a critically acclaimed rap artist, winning three BET Awards, two MTV awards, and receiving nominations for three Grammy Awards and six World Music Awards.
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