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Bio
Kurtis Stanley a.k.a. Khalid Akil was born in Nashville, TN on May 28th. The youngest of three, he grew up in Old Hickory – right outside of East Nashville – where his mother and father always stressed the value of hard work and perseverance.
Following his graduation from Mt. Juliet High School, he attended the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where he majored in Advertising and graduated in 2002 with a Bachelor’s of Science.
With his passion for creative writing/poetry, introduced by his mother, and his love for music, it was during his time at UT that he began to focus on rapping and emceeing. With a vision of what he wanted to do musically, he met Bracey Halbrook (Obtuse Music) who helped him hone his craft. His relentlessness on the mic and tireless work ethic quickly propelled him to an artistic maturity that belies his age and experience.
After his time with Obtuse Music, the label where he released his debut, Long Time Comin’, he met Kent Gillum of Dirty Cabin Records. With no concrete vision in mind for a follow-up to his first album, he and Kent only had one goal – have fun making music. As he grew personally during this time period, his music began to reflect new life experiences, helping him accelerate his growth even more as a lyricist.
You’ll be hard pressed to categorize him as Dirty South, Mid West, East or West Coast given his versatility, mic charisma, and intellect. And with his second release, Time’s Flying, he’s just now beginning to tap into his potential.
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