1kdono started making music because he felt like he could. That's it. No elaborate plan, no validation. Just the decision to try. May 2021, 16 years old, he was making Fortnite montages and heard Baby Santana's "Anti Social" and something clicked. A week or two later he was recording. By January 2022 he had an album out. Now he's graduating college May 11th with a marketing degree and the YouTube numbers are moving. The visuals are tighter. The sound is cohesive. He drops when it's ready and it plays all the way through.

[music]

"I just felt like I could. And then I just tried it. And then I just kept on going."

"It was like something new. Like therapy too. You can just say what you want to say on it. People normally would be listening to lyrics, but people listen to music for the feeling, you know what I mean? For certain feelings, emotion. So I try to do both."

When did you start?

"I started making music in 2021, like May of 2021. I was like 16. Then 2022, January, I dropped my first album. I just know I like to make songs, I just wanted to drop it. I felt like that shit was hard."

You don't plan releases?

"Nah. I feel like a song is hard, I don't really fuck with it, I drop that shit. Whatever I feel like dropping, I drop."

What made you think you could actually do this?

"I was making Fortnite videos and I used Baby Santana's 'Anti Social' for a montage because he was going crazy on that song. That whole thing probably influenced me to make music too. Like a week or two later I was like, bro, I can do this. I don't know why I thought that. I can't tell you why. But I just tried it and I just kept going. I developed a passion for it. It was like something new. Like therapy. You can just say what you want to say and people are gonna feel it."

What's happening right now?

"About to graduate college May 11th. I decided to get my degree in marketing so it goes hand in hand. I see my YouTube going up. This is crazy. My dreams coming true. I appreciate everybody that's fucking with me."

The visuals?

"I just thought of me showing my face, looking presentable for the audience. I want to make every video kind of like its own thing. The whole structure is very important to me."

What are features going for?

"$50 right now. Prices going up but I'm gonna be humble."

The Vato line?

"I just wanted to say some Spanish shit. I always thought that was cool, mixing Spanish with rap songs."

What's Zahh?

"That was like our slang. Me and my boys made that shit up. Zahh means like good shit."

Shoutouts?

"I appreciate everybody that fucks with me. We gonna go crazy. Shout out to everybody that helped me behind the scenes. You know who you are. Shout out God. Everything's gonna be okay. Let's keep it going."

Thirty minutes in and he was just getting comfortable. The conversation kept going for another hour after we stopped recording. Real talk, no press answers. He's 21, got his head on straight, and he's building something that doesn't need permission from anybody.