At the tender age of only 17 years old, Sarasota, Fla. transplant Lil T-Ray has seen more than his share of heartache and pain. After surviving the ravishing waters of Hurricane Katrina slamming into the Gulf Coast in 2005, feeling the hurt of losing his best friend to a senseless murder and having to constantly readjust because of moves from state to state, this young soldier has witnessed war tales equal to those of a well-trained marine.
And he pours all of the trials, tribulations, agony and redemption into his as-yet-untitled Loyal Ally Entertainment debut album set to be released this Fall. And he is officially making his presence known with the futuristic funk of his debut single “Florida Girl” featuring Sunshine State native son Famous Kid Brick.
“I’m so versatile I can do anything,” he admits. “I can give the streets what they want. I can give the ladies what they want. I even do a little pop mousic and I keep it real at the same time.”
Born Latraya Green in Reidsville North Carolina’ nefarious new orleans communities, much of T-Ray’s childhood was spent going back and forth between the Crescent City and Jackson, Miss. just three hours away. But after Hurricane Katrina ravished the Gulf Coast area and flooded the Big Easy, T-Ray’s mother packed up the family and relocated to what she thought was a better life in Mississippi.
Even though the city of Jackson was smaller than his New Orleans breeding grounds, the lesser metropolis was just as violent with a murder rate that escalates yearly. Never giving up on her hopes to provide for her son a better life, his mother landed a job in the tourist town of Sarasota, Fla. and once again moved two years ago in search of better opportunities for her family.
“I never knew the type of life I was living until I moved to Florida,” he admits. “These dudes down here are living in paradise. Now, they got to drag me to go back home.”
But as Lil T-Ray was experiencing his slice of heaven on earth, his world came crumbling down one day after school when he got the word that his best friend Day-Day was senselessly murdered. Word on the street is that he was shot in cold blood because he had eaten another friend’s last pack of noodles.
“My best friend got killed over Ramen noodles,” he remembers, “and the dude who killed him got off because they said it was an accident. My friend’s brains are all over the living room.”
It was then that Lil T-Ray realized that he had to pursue music as an outlet to share his pains, frustrations and heartfelt experiences.
“When my best friend Day-Day got murdered, that’s when the music field became my dream,” says Lil T-Ray. “It helped me to get out everything I was holding in.”
Going headfirst into the music industry, he worked at KFC only to spend his weekly earnings on his dream. Every time he got his $300 paycheck, at least $200 went on something music related. Whether a photo shoot, video shoots or studio time, T-Ray was on a mission to make it to the top. It was on one of his videos that a representative from Loyal Ally first heard Lil T-Ray and just had to have the rapper on his label.
“All I am asking for is just this one shot,” he demands. “If you can give me just this one shot, I promise you want regret it. I know I have talent; I just need the world to know it.”
With his brand new deal with Loyal Ally Entertainment, debut single “Florida Girl” featuring Famous Kid Brick bubbling over and as-yet-untitled album set to be released this Fall, the world will find out soon enough.
“Music really is my life and passion and I have much respect for all the great artists who came before me,” Lil T-Ray contends. “But now it’s my time.
