Baton Rouge-based rapper Kevin Gates has become a household name in the South. He has a fan base like Lil Boosie, and he’s toured three times since the release of his debut mixtape, By Any Means, last year.
The rapper has made a career out of rapping about hard-hitting, sometimes downright depressing street stories. He tells them with more detail and in a much shorter lyric than many other rappers do on their albums.
He’s a rapper that speaks freely about his own demons and struggles with addiction, and he has no problem admitting that he’s not a perfect person or a completely virtuous one.
Despite all of this, Gates is still committed to his music and his craft. He’s been so focused on it that he’s managed to put out three album-quality mixtapes in the past two years.
His latest, Islah, is due out in December. The album, which was recorded while he was in prison, is full of gripping raps about his life and the people who have touched it.
He also talks about his rocky relationship with Dreka, whom he’s been married to for nearly a decade. She was the executive producer on both of his albums, By Any Means and Luca Brasi 2, and she’s now the mother of Khaza and Islah.
When he’s not rapping, Gates is busy with his family and his business. During an appearance on the I AM ATHLETE podcast, he revealed that he has a “clogged throat chakra” that makes him susceptible to illness, but when he started telling the truth, he’s observed a big improvement in his health.
