Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric McNeil. Him and his team share his story with us below.
Please kick things off for us with some background on the story.
Eric Kalob McNeil (born September 10, 1993) is an American Hip Hop recording artist from Interstate, a small family-oriented neighborhood in a compact country town called Perry, FL. Eric is the baby boy of his single mother’s six kids and he was what you would call a knee baby, he and his younger sister. They were both very spoiled and protected as could be by not only his mom but also their older brother and sister. Which left them sheltered and less likely to mingle with friends outside of school halls. Growing up, McNeil was very shy and conservative. An introvert who played soccer, a bright scholar but once opened up he could change the mood in the whole room for better or worse. Not finding it too easy to open up, McNeil never thought he could trust anyone with his real personal feelings and thoughts so he wrote them down. He started off with poetry. It was his only way to escape the madness of feeling alone and venting about his fear of talking. Thanks to his older brother, musicalways surrounded him.
In the morning, they both got dressed for school staring at a 2pac and a PlayBoy picture on the wall. Listening to the southern sound of Master P’s gang “No Limit”, DMX, or another popular New Orleans group called “The Hot Boyz.” In the evening, while getting ready for bed and on the next school morning, Eminem, Nas, Goodie Mob, and OutKastwould play. At night, Eric would pretend to be sleep while his brother stayed up serenading the woman on the other end of the phone with Usher, Maxwell, Tyrese, & R. Kelly playing in the background. During the summer, it was BET jams all day and night. Eric fell in love with the beautiful women, do rags, cars, and beepers that he saw. Most importantly, he loved the freedom of how artists could express themselves. Eric wrote his first love song in the 5th grade and shared it with his crush. From that day on, he knew that he would never be the same. The fact that it felt so good to be vulnerable and to express himself was a drug. It was a high he never felt and never wanted to lose. He has recognized his gift and decided to use it for the greater good. Eric’s talent is meant to inspire others through the self-expression of his music and to be truthful at all times.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth rode, but it has definitely been worth. The real struggles came from approaching every label possible and getting the run around because of who they are comparing you too. It played a big part in my confidence, it makes you feel worthless. At a time in my life, I felt depressed, like the goal I’ve worked for over a decade may never get accomplished. But after you realized that the power is within, your whole outlook on everything completely changes. I would say that would be the biggest struggle, everything else is honestly small hurdles.
Can you give our readers some background on your music?
Being a musician is one of the best and also most influential platforms that someone can have, music moves the world and inspire moods, speeches, anything you can name. So with me being an artist I realized that I have a voice that I can do a lot with, and my goal with this platform is to show the everyone what the world looks like from multiple perspectives, make them aware of what is going on around us and also to drop knowledge to the people that need it.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite memory from childhood would be writing a poem for a girl in my sixth-grade class. I remember vividly spending the whole night trying to paint the best picture possible of me and her being together, try to win her over with my creativity and diction. I gave her the letter and of course, I didn’t have a cell phone or anything, so I spent the whole night thinking about how she fell in love with me. When I got to school the next day, the whole school knew about it, although they said it was dope the attention caught me off guard. After shaking it off, I took it as a compliment, if I can make the whole school feel a love letter, I know I can make the world feel an album.
Contact Info:
- Website: wearegoforbroke.com
- Email: arcanemusicempire@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/iamericmcneil
- Twitter: twitter.com/iamericmcneil
Image Credit:
Dee Thomas and Mealionheir Shots
Suggest a story: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
