The Break Presents: Kid Trunks
Over the past few years, Broward County, Fla. has been hip-hop's most fertile breeding ground for surging talent. The Sunshine State hotbed has yielded stars like XXXTentacion, Ski Mask The Slump God, Kodak Black and others. Kid Trunks is next up.
The youngest member of Florida music collective Members Only, Trunks, 18, grew up under the guidance of X, who helped jumpstart his career. "Ever since he first saw me, he told me if I get tattoos on my face and I rap I would become lit," Trunks tells XXL of advice from the slain artist. "At first I didn't believe him, but he had a vision and helped me with my sound. That's how things got started for me."
The self-proclaimed "best Asian rapper alive," Trunks released his first major project, Super Saiyan, earlier this spring, reeling in cameos by Robb Bank$, Ski Mask The Slump God, Warhols and A$AP Ant. Highlighting Trunks' melodic flows and cadences, the project offered listeners a different take on the life of young Asian rapper hailing from Florida. "Living in Florida, everyday is a new experience for me," he says. "With this project, I just wanted to give my fans a taste of what I could do."
With a growing fanbase and new project in the works, Kid Trunks is looking to put the spotlight on Broward County once again and continue the legacy of his fallen friend and mentor XXXTentacion.
Get to know Kid Trunks in the latest installment of The Break.
Age: 18
Hometown: Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
I grew up listening to: “Mumford & Sons, Papa Roach and, like, 50 Cent an' shit. It’s a mixture of shit. A lot of weird shit. 50 Cent really inspired me to be a rapper when I was like 8 or 9. I saw the movie Get Rich or Die Tryin'—It looked lit being a rapper, so fuck it!”
People compare my style to: “People compare me to X and Ski. It’s more because of my association to them. I got my own sound.”
Most people don’t know: “I love to cook. I cook anything. I cook a lot of pho and shit. Typical Asian shit like fried rice an' shit.”
My standout moment to date: “My first time performing at Rolling Loud in the Bay. X was performing and he brought me out and it was like 25,000 people in the crowd. That shit was crazy as fuck. I remember X getting mad with me that day because I didn’t want to go on the private jet. I had to do mad shit with my label before the show.”
My goal in hip-hop: "Is to be the greatest Asian rapper alive, take my career to the next level, venture into other businesses and continue my brother’s legacy."
I’m going to be the next: “Greatest Asian rapper to ever live.”
Follow Kid Trunks on Twitter, Instagram and SoundCloud.
Standouts:
"Love Never Blossoms"
"IDK"
Super Saiyan
See New Music Releases for August 2018