Lost from all convention and delved into strangeness is Multimedia Hip-Hop Artist Sly Watts. Born and raised in New Orleans, LA, Sly began rapping at the early age of 6 and picked up on music production during his pre-adolescent years. Throughout his childhood, Sly taught himself illustration, and painting, where he would develop imaginary musical projects, draw the album covers, and create imaginary tracklists. In his late teens, while learning graphic design, Sly taught himself animation and began to animate his illustrated works as music videos for songs he would record and produce in Ableton Live.

Sly listened to many different styles of music that influenced his work as a producer and as a rapper. These acts include Ab-Soul, Nas, Lupe Fiasco, Jay Electronica, MF DOOM, Big L, Herbie Hancock, 9th Wonder, Madlib, Kanye West, BADBADNOTGOOD, Dave Brubeck, Tyler, the Creator, Cortex, Curtis Mayfield, Jimi Hendrix, Wolfmother, Rage Against the Machine, and Michael Jackson. Sly also became influenced by fine artists such as Banksy, M.C. Escher, Salvador Dali, and Nick Cave, all of whom he also considers to have influenced him as a Hip-Hop artist.

His latest release, ‘The Future, She’s Beautiful,’ captures his multidimensional and experimental nature as an artist and illustrates his prerogative to break the rules and challenge perceptions of the world. With Hip-Hop music as his vessel, Sly Watts flourishes as a representation of the strange, activated, and free black mind.