I came up in a family where music was usually playing in the background. Either my dad was playing records on his stereo, my uncle Keith was practicing the drums, or my uncle Mike was deejaying a house party at Grandma's house. The ladies in my family loved music just as much—I can remember watching my mama clean the house while singing along to Supremes songs as if she was Diana Ross herself, not to mention my sister being a huge Prince fan and exposing me to one of the most original artists ever.

My family helped open my ears, but my desire to be cool led to me writing my first rap song at age 12. It was the crazy mid-'80s, breakdancing was trending, and hip-hop was the cool new thing. I wasn't the best at breakdancing, so I decided to write a rap—not to become a rapper per se, but just to have something to recite during lunchtime freestyle sessions at middle school. So yeah, I wrote a rap just to be cool.

Over the next few years, I wrote constantly. I was interested in journalism as a teen, writing articles for school newspapers, and whenever I claimed I had no homework, my dad made me take an encyclopedia article and rewrite it in my own words. Doing all these things helped me hone my storytelling skills, which transferred directly into my music and defined my style as a narrative artist.

Consistently writing, practicing, and performing landed me my first professional music opportunity at age 20. A mutual friend introduced me to an up-and-coming rapper from Seattle named E-Dawg. We  jumped in the studio and recorded two songs: "Drop Top" and "Little Locs." While "Little Locs" was a dope street banger, "Drop Top" caught the attention of hip-hop legends Sir Mix-a-Lot and Rick Rubin, ultimately serving as the inspiration for Seattle... The Dark Side, a compilation album released by Rhyme Cartel/Def America in 1993.

Around 2005, I co-founded the rap duo Black Bizness, independently releasing two albums: Shop Open and Buyin' n Sellin' (presented by Bay Area rap legend San Quinn). This era marked a brand-new chapter for me. I started the phase as Filthy Rich, transitioned to Rich Tycoon aka Filthy Rich, and ultimately emerged as simply Rich Tycoon—a better, evolved version of where I started.

Independently, I've recorded with heavyweights like Yukmouth of The Luniz, Chris Rene (from Simon Cowell's X-Factor), Rappin' 4-Tay, Keak Da Sneak, producer Sean T, Dubee (Thizz Ent.), One Drop Scott, The Mekanix, and Indecent the Slapmaster. In 2015, Sir Mix-a-Lot pulled me on stage at the Catalyst Nightclub in Santa Cruz, California, to tell the crowd I was one of the dopest emcees he'd ever met.

Fans appreciate my raspy, original voice and the real street stories in my tracks. As authentic as it gets, my goal remains clear: make good music that people can enjoy, relate to, and learn from. To date, my music has reached listeners across over 20 countries independently, and I'm continuing to build momentum every day.