MattyB

MattyB first emerged as an online phenomenon in 2010 when he was seven years old. The performer, born Matthew David Morris in Duluth, Georgia, performs under the moniker MattyBRaps and maintains a streaming channel that has drawn more than three million subscribers. Exposure to hip-hop began at age five, after which he developed his rapping and dancing abilities through encouragement from relatives and siblings. A rendition of Sean Kingston and Justin Bieber’s “Eenie Meenie” first drew widespread internet notice, prompting nearly one hundred additional covers—of material by acts such as Outkast and Bruno Mars—to appear on the same channel. In 2015, working alongside cousin MarsRaps, he shifted toward original material. The resulting debut EP, Outside the Lines, featured four tracks including “New Kids” and “The King.” He followed that project a year later with the memoir That’s a Rap. By the end of 2016, singles such as “Can’t Get You Off My Mind” and “California Dreamin’” reflected a more developed musical approach.