Young Wolverhampton rapper looks to inspire others to follow dream
A young rapper from Wolverhampton has turned his life around through his love of music, and is encouraging others to follow in his footsteps.
Tristan Bexton, aged 18 from Bushbury, is beginning to make a name for himself in the Midlands' grime and hip hop scene after leaving school with few qualifications and unsure of what he wanted to do in the long run.
He said: "I went to Moreton High School and I found it very hard to concentrate during lessons and I was hanging around with the wrong crowds and doing the wrong things.
"Before the music, also getting myself into trouble with the police for fighting and things like that.
"But I'd seen my cousins making music and doing well from it. As I matured my mind developed, I wanted to change what I was doing and as music started coming more naturally to me I decided I wanted to do it professionally and make music into my career.
"So I started writing lyrics and releasing things on YouTube and Instagram, I saw my music was doing pretty well so I chose to do it full time, all day everyday."
Since he chose this path his life has changed for the better.
"I used to work as a warehouse operative. Now, I wouldn't change my career for the world, if people realised how much work I actually put in day in day out, they'd see it's not easy but also why I love it so much." He added.
In the last 12 months, Tristan has seen his music career begin to take off, with thousands of people following his social media platforms, watching his videos and streaming his songs.
Two of his original tracks, I Told You and HoodCeleb, have been played on BBC Radio WM, giving his work even more exposure.
He has now been signed to an artist development programme at Beatsabar Studios at Newhampton Arts Centre in Wolverhampton, managed by John Paul and Soul Trador, who help young Black Country artists make their way in the music industry.
The young musician is continuing to up his game; he's auditioned for hit Netflix series Top Boy and BBC Three's Rap Game, as well as holding the top spot in an open mic competition Block Star UK Tour, which is led by grime star Big Narstie.
Tristan added: "Round two of the competition is on January 25 and I'll be performing in front of four judges and I'm currently in first place out of all of the entrants in West Midlands.
"Performing in front of Big Narstie is a very big opportunity and I will make sure to use the full potential of it."
Speaking about how far he has come since he was at school, Tristan hopes that his story will encourage more young people to find something their passionate about to pursue.
He added: "I would encourage anybody to go and do something artistic, whether its rap, dance or singing. It's a good way to block out the negativity that's happened in your life and help you turn it around."
