“I couldn’t relate to a lot of people in Christian Hip-Hop at the time. That’s why I can’t really, and people gonna hate me for this, name any old Christian Hip-Hop songs. I didn’t grow up on it. I couldn’t relate to those dudes at the time, but I knew at my age, who I was, and who I was around, there were people who needed something authentic or something they could relate to on my side.”
This is Wxlf. He’s a Dominican immigrant who currently resides in Florida. Much like most of us, he has put in countless hours chasing dreams and acceptance. Now, God’s guiding him on the path He wants Wxlf to be on, which is to create music for the undefined.
Wxlf’s Childhood
Wxlf’s parent’s made the move to Florida when he was around nine years old. They moved from Santo Domingo to Miami. All he wanted at the time was to become a baseball star. Despite how much he had to adjust to American culture, society, and language, he still pursued his dream of professional baseball. When he grew of age to attend middle school, his parents enrolled him in a private Christian school in the area.
“One of the teachers there used to be a rapper and do Christian music and stuff like that. At that time, some of my friends from the school were putting me onto Swoope, Canon, obviously Lecrae, and Andy who was C-Lite at the time. So I started hearing about CHH, but it was never my interest,” Wxlf said.
While it was slow at first, Wxlf’s passion for Hip-Hop grew. He began to write about a song a month. Eventually, his writing grew to a habit of one song a day.
“As life kept going, growing up, and learning from things, I accepted Christ as my Lord and savior. I started getting more involved in church. By the end of my 11th-grade year, I quit baseball to chase my dreams to be an artist. That was a big moment for me because baseball was my life. That’s all I knew. That decision was really the leap of faith.”
The Birth of Undefined
And so he worked on his music skills. He studied artists on how they produced, wrote, and marketed.
“One of the artists who I really sat down and listened to is J. Cole. I learned the story-telling, the way he writes, the way he puts his words together, and stuff. Most of that I learned is from him.”
It was while he was trying to grow and discover himself as an artist when God placed on his heart the main message he should deliver: Undefined.
“It’s ok to be different. At the end of the day, you’re not defined by what you do. You’re not defined by your past. None of that can define you” Wxlf said. “We say ‘defined by God, not by society. So where undefined to the world because we are defined by God.'”
2019
Fast forward to 2019, the year that changed everything for Wxlf. He had worked on and released music to little success. His Spotify had around 2,000 monthly listeners at the time, but his plans for his career were not working out. More importantly, his relationships with friends and co-workers were suffering.
“It was so much going on in my life that I started questioning my faith and questioning whether I wanted to do this music career. Then Aklesso came into the picture.”
The two had met a couple of times in prior years but never had a friendship. Aklesso appeared in Wxlf’s life again in 2019. This time the two would form an inseparable bond.
“He was there for me every step of the way. Everything I needed, he was there. We would get on the phone and he would pray for me. It was amazing. He’s my brother for life. He came at such a perfect time.”
After bonding with Aklesso and reconnecting with God, his career took off. In 2019, he and Aklesso hosted an event titled “Summer In the City,” which the energy drink company Monster sponsored. They ended up selling out the venue. Around the same time, Wxlf met Gawvi. Their relationship turned into a form of mentorship. Gawvi even invited Wxlf to write for his Heathen and Juvenil Noche albums. Later that year he performed on tour dates for Reconcile and WHATUPRG.
“That 2019 year shaped me as an artist because I went through every stage, not just as an artist but personally as well. I feel like I had to go through things I went through early on that year in order for me to be prepared for what was to come. That’s what God always does man, He’s not going to take you somewhere you’re not ready for. He’s going to prepare you.”
Next For Wxlf
Wxlf now is still grinding and looking to grow his brand of Undefined. His debut album DEFINE ME IF YOU CAN dropped earlier this year, and he said to look out for more music videos for the albums and music with Gawvi.
“I feel like with this me and my team we’re pushing it. We’re trying to bring new stuff to the space that CHH has never seen before.”
