Charlotte rapper Well$ flew under our radars when he released his debut EP, 2012’s $ay La V, that brought up his profile. Now, with his city behind him, the 19-year-old spitter is aiming to let his next project do the talking. Well$ is here.

Name: Well$

Age: 19

Hometown: Charlotte, NC

I grew up listening to: To be a hundred with you I really don't remember being really into music 'til I was, like, 13-14, you know, making a conscious decision to choose what I like and what I want to listen to. Before then, I would just listen to whatever was playing. My cousins were big into French rap like Akhenaton and Youssoupha. They also used to play the old Cash Money shit a lot. So I grew up on those, but when I turned 14 I was bumping Pac Div EP by Pac div, So Far Gone, A Kid Named Cudi, The Cool Kids, and Kush & Orange Juice. Those kinda shaped me and put me on game. That's all I listened to at an important point in my life, ya feel me?

Most people don't know I: I'm so artsy that I don't write raps to beats, I listen to the sound of rain on pavement [Laughs]. But seriously, I've been working on my craft for a long time. I could have put music out earlier but it was better that I built the right foundation and worked on my sound with my cousin Alec Lomami, trying to develop my own lane.

My style's been compared to: Joey Bada$$ out the gate, but I don't think it's cause of the music, I mean, we both tall and skinny but it's cool I guess. But I've heard some crazy stuff like Fab, Big Sean, A$AP Rocky [Laughs]. Yo, some dude came at me on Twitter and said I sounded like Joe Budden… craziest shit I heard but it's dope how people hear different things. But one thing is for sure, after I drop my next project, MTSYD: The Revenge Of The African Booty Scratcher, they gonna know me as Well$.

My standout records and/or moments to date have been: My stand out record would probably be “State Of Ecstasy.” That’s the track that made me believe I can do this shit. It got my foot in the door. It's also my most viewed video sitting on 60,000 views. But most recently I gotta say “Savoir-Faire,” produced by THE BL∆CK HE∆RTS CLUB. The video was premiered on Noisey and made it to Complex, The Source, Miss Info, 2DBZ. Oh yeah, shout out to my grandma for the cameo, she killin’ these niggas.

My standout moment would be going to South Africa earlier this year. It was cool being out there, especially doing what I love. I shot some videos, had a couple radio interviews, did a few shows. They showed love out there. Also, when my little cousin said he looked up to me, that shit meant the world to me.

My goal in Hip-Hop is: Lots of people in my generation try to be too niche with their shit. I guess that's cool. But one thing I learned studying the greats like Big, 'Pac, Jay, OutKast is to not set any limits. So my goal is to be the kinda artist who can do it all: serious songs, fun songs, introspective songs, braggadocious songs, ignorant songs, conscious songs, etc. 'Cause as a human I go through different emotions, and my music represents the real me.

I'm gonna be the next: Nigga with a Segway.

To check out more of my music go to: Follow me on Twitter (@Wells_Fargo32)

Standout: "Savoir-Faire"

Also check out: "State of Ecstasy"

And: "Dreams Of An Insomniac"

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