Rawllie recalls praying to God for guidance in 2012. “I had hit rock bottom. I had nothing and nowhere to go and the only thing that provided any kind of relief was music. I could sit there, write and keep myself focused on the possibilities. I felt like God had closed every other door, so that I would clearly see my future in music.” His mother’s health prompted the rekindling of their relationship and he moved in to take care of her. This same year Rawllie met Milly Kartia and together they pushed, and encouraged one another to make their dream become a reality. Vowing to get out of the struggle.
For the next two years Rawllie, and Milly learned to produce their own beats, and engineer their music. This determination and desire to improve, not only with his music but in life, prompted the beginning of the lifestyle he describes as “The crash life”.
“Living the crash life means to live life ‘all gas no brakes’. Whatever you want, you go for it without hesitation. Raw and gnarly.”
The combination of raw and gnarly coined the term “Rawllie”, a phrase he and Milly would say before shows, and soon after he took it as his name. It was his mother’s faith and reminder to follow as a child of God, and to look to himself and see a king. This brought him to be identified as the artist King Rawllie.
2014 Rawllie accompanied Milly to meet with producer Skipp, of Nuq and Skip, and artist PMZ about the possibility of working together. “It was a Saturday when we had our first meeting. The vibe was amazing and we looked at each other, and had this bright idea to join forces and start a super team. He loaded us up with a bunch of beats and that following Saturday I had three songs ready to go. The Saturday after that, I had four. And it’s been going like that ever since.”
Today King Rawllie is an artist of Sunset Capitol, an entertainment label, also located in Tacoma, WA.
When asked what motivates him to pursue music, Rawllie states; “It’s by the grace of God that my mother is still alive today. She was given 9 months to live 10 years ago. Any day can be her last, and that’s what inspires me to keep going. I want to show my son that with hard work and ambition he can do anything and become his own success. I don’t want them to struggle. I can’t stop. I got a family to feed and a mother to heal and that’s where I’m at with that.”
*What are you doing now?
Right now I’m working on the business side of music. I’ve got the music, now I’m handling all the paperwork, press kits etc..
*What’s next?
What will be coming soon is the release of my first official single “Make it Work.” and my mixtape, “KampFakeWood” to be released early September.
*Any shows coming up in August?
August 15 I’ll be performing at the Music Fest at The Town on 6th ave in Tacoma.
*Who have you worked with?
Lil rip and 50 cow. Also, look out for collaborations with Milly Kartia, PMZ and Ohjmarie from Sunset Capitol.