Eight-year-old Swedish-Namibian Ivar Fäldt Wahengo, known on YouTube as Lil-Dreed, has launched a YouTube channel on which he composes his own beats for his songs.
The young content creator currently has four songs on his YouTube channel, with the first aptly titled ‘First Song’ released just one month ago. The budding musician has since released three other tracks, titled ‘God Help Me’, ‘Burning’, and ‘We Going Bad’.
“I got my inspiration for the songs from things that happen in everyday life, things I see or stuff that happens to me,” Lil-Dreed says, reflecting on his journey. “I also listen to a lot of music and get my inspiration from other musicians like Lil Nas X, XXXTentacion and Juice Wrld.”
Born in Geneva, Switzerland, to a Namibian father and Swedish mother, the young beatmaker currently lives in Copenhagen, Denmark. His father, Jackson Wahengo, is a well-known local Shambo and Afro-jazz musician known for his guitar-playing skills. Lil-Dreed, however, is keen to carve out his own musical path.
“I do more of hip hop, which is different from what my dad does, but yes, I would say I am a musician like my father,” he said.
His unconventional start in the music industry came about thanks to his interest in an app. “I was searching for ideas on YouTube on how to make your own beats and saw a tutorial about an app that helps you make your own music and beats. So, I downloaded that app and tried it,” he says.
Soon, the youngster was delving more into the musical arts, encouraged by his daily guitar-playing sessions with his father and his passion for music-making. He hopes to form a band with his close friend Theo, a drummer, although this dream has been stalled by the onset of the global Covid-19 pandemic. Despite the setbacks, Lil-Dreed eventually hopes to hit 1 million subscribers, and make his fortune from YouTube.
“I want to get rich and be famous so that me and my homies can live in a mansion and have a big studio too. I know I am thinking big, but that’s just me,” he adds.
According to Google’s 2019 list of most successful YouTubers under the age of 18, six-year-old Boram from South Korea who made headlines in July was able to purchase a 9,5 billion won (N$117 million) building in Seoul’s trendy Gangnam suburb.
Another 9-year-old Youtuber made international news when he was named the highest-earning YouTube star of 2020 by Forbes Magazine. Ryan Kaji earned nearly US$30 million (N$439 million) from his channel, which boasts over 40 million subscribers. Kaji’s channel includes video reviews of new toys and home science experiments.
Follow Lil-Dreed on YouTube
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