We at The Dope Show have been keeping tabs on rising emcee L.E.O for awhile and finally decided to pick the brain of the young Houston native to see what piques his interest between writing and recording.
Growing up in Southwest Houston in a neighborhood riddled with violence, drug use and gang-related activities, L.E.O witnessed his mom hold down two jobs to make a better life for him.
After moving to a more suitable area in Houston, the budding rapper got a chance to take in music knowledge and experience from his father, uncle and extended family which began to shift his musical perspective and shape his artistry.
Fast-forward to present day and you find L.E.O making a nice buzz on the Houston music scene with the release of his debut mixtape, Look No Further, that hones in on that classic boom-bap sound with a fresh, energetic flow.
We recently caught up with him to chop it up about music and life, so if you’re looking for the dope facts on L.E.O, look no further.
Dope Fact 1: Music is life
L.E.O: “I couldn’t really tell you if there was one album in particular that made me fall in love with music, I think it was a combination of things. The very first artist I can remember diving really deep into and learning all the words was Drake (excuse my youth).
With time, I got into a lot of Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, Jay Z, and Eminem. I often had the same songs and albums on repeat. I just love the ability of being able to express myself, my feelings, my ideas and quite frankly anything that may be going on in my head, in a way that I may have never been able to do if not for music.”
Dope Fact 2: Treats his first like his last
L.E.O: “In all honesty, my latest project, Look No Further, has definitely made some memories for me. This project was really the project that set me on course to meeting some very important people that I plan on keeping around my entire career.
I was able to establish a solid team of producers, add two awesome audio engineers to my team, and I have the support of some other people that I know will always be in my corner. I can’t ask for much more than that.”
Dope Fact 3: He seen Logic give a dope show
L.E.O: “Believe it or not, I have been to a total of two concerts in my entire life and they were both something memorable. My very first concert was Logic’s “The Incredible World Tour” in Houston, Texas.
Logic is such an inspiration for me so seeing him live and in the flesh was out of this world and something I will never forget. Two weeks after that concert, I went to a Kendrick Lamar’s concert and of course he is a huge inspiration for me as well so that experience was extremely memorable.”
Dope Fact 4: There’s no shame in his game
L.E.O: “Besides writing lyrics and listening to instrumentals 24/7, I love playing video games and hanging out with friends. I am a pretty simple guy. I’m not really into the night life so a perfect night for me is an online session of Grand Theft Auto!”
Dope Fact 5: The wrestling game reminds him of the rap game
L.E.O: “I’ve loved pro wrestling for as long as I can remember. The storytelling and athletics are something that you can’t find in any other source of entertainment. If you know the ins and outs of the wrestling business, you’ll find that it is eerily similar to the Hip-Hop world in some aspects. I love it!”
Dope Fact 6: He enjoys nice walks
L.E.O: “I’m into The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, The Flash and a lot of other shows. I think I’ve watched the entire Breaking Bad series about two or three times. Lately, TV shows have become so compelling it’s almost like an escape from reality.”
Dope Fact 7: Cartoons shaped his young world
L.E.O: “Cartoons is probably one of the most nostalgic topics ever. Being a 90s baby, there are so many cartoons I love that I can’t name them all. I wouldn’t say they changed my life but they definitely made my childhood memorable.”
The Dope Show 