A key player in Western Sydney’s hip hop community, New Zealander Elijah Yo was always destined for a career in rap.

It’s little wonder Elijah Yo started experimenting with music at 15, given his family ties. His father was involved in NZ’s ’90s hip hop scene, promoting legendary acts (like The Game, Boyz 2 Men and Bobby Brown) across the ditch and in Australia during the ‘90s, and his older brother educated him on underground ‘90s rap from a young age.

Since then, Elijah Yo has been building his repertoire and churning out solo and collaborative music consistently over the last four years. In May he released his debut mixtape B Side, a well thought out collection of quick-fire rhymes, R&B production, suburban sound bites and honest, funny­ anecdotes. Highlights include closing trio ‘Missed Calls’, the piano-led ‘Chapter 20’ and ‘Westcoast Party (Remix)’ – listen out for the delicious sample of Funkadelic’s ‘70s track ‘(Not Just) Knee Deep’.

With a slew of gigs under his belt for the first half of 2018, Elijah Yo isn’t slowing down – already onto crafting the next batch of tunes for later this year. It’s this focus and determination that sets him apart, proving Western Sydney’s melting pot of talents are continuing to sculpt their individual voices.