“2kDrae”, born Andrae Thames in the impoverished but music rich city of Gary, grew up during the golden era of hip hop in which he collected many musical influences along the way including artists from multiple time periods and genres such as Jimi Hendrix, and Bob Marley. His sound is a reflection of his more contemporary influences such as Kid Cudi, Wiz Khalifa, and Pharrell Williams. Inspired by his older cousin, he began rapping at the age of 16. Rapping had become a hobby in which his skills were honed on the house party cypher scene during his three year post highschool graduation stay in San Diego. During his time in San Diego, Drae evolved from a free style artist to a songwriter and recording artist that began to take his craft serious. Upon his return to the Midwest, Drae refused to be held captive in a dead end job that would fail to bring his vision of life to fruition. This further fueled his fire to pursue his music whole heartedly; as he began to invest his time and his money into his musical craft. The 23 year old artist is creating an undeniable sound that hipsters and conservative hiphop heads are finding to be a breath of fresh air. His debut project entitled, “Hard Work/Loud Purp” is due to release in the third quarter of 2013. This project includes hints of Hendrix, Marley, and Kid Cudi influences, and is receiving great audience responses from venues in the Chicagoland area. The project also features a wide array of artists from various genres such as Tuck, Hollis Ballard, Yoson Tala, Rom Metastic, Jay Staffz, Fakulty Studios, and Sammy F Steward.