The music scene has once again found a diamond in the rough as up and coming rising star and New Orleans, Louisiana native, August Alsina, has steadily begun his claim to fame. BET-award winning singer and songwriter, August Alsina, exploded onto the scene in early 2013 and has made it clear that he has no plans on leaving. After releasing his highly-anticipated album, Testimony, on April 15th, 2014, critics were more than impressed seeing as how the album was met with generally positive reviews. The release date, however, was far from a typical day for August Alsina. April 15th marked the birthday of his older brother, Melvin La’Branch III, who was shot and killed on August 31st, 2010. With a successful debut album under his belt and endless waves of momentum, Alsina has never wavered when it comes to making sure his brothers’ legacy and his message lives on.
While August Alsina has plenty of body art on display for the world to see, the date, April 15th, tattooed on his arm speaks volumes to the effect his brother has had on his life. “Don’t forget about your brother. Don’t forget about his daughters. Don’t forget your little nieces growing up without a father.” A lyric taken from one of Alsina’s songs from the emotion-driven EP, Downtown: Life Under The Gun, that speaks volumes for the responsibilities the artists faces besides the hustle of being a rising star in the world of music. Life has been anything but a fairytale for August Alsina on his road to making a better life for himself through music as he explains through his lyrics. He often refers back to his past life being forced to call the back of a convenient store ‘home’ after being kicked out of his house. Growing up without a positive male role model in his life, he watched his Mother struggle working two jobs on her own to provide for him and his siblings.
After the death of his older brother, La’Branch III, he came to the realization that he would have to make major steps in order to make his dreams come true. Citing critically-acclaimed artist, Lauryn Hill, as his biggest inspiration to pursue singing, he began posting videos of him covering songs on YouTube. After years of hard work and determination, Alsina finally landed a record deal with Def Jam Recordings and he hasn’t missed a beat yet. As his debut album, Testimony, continues to top the charts, his tour is well under way and so is his hard work.
For more information on August Alsina, be sure to visit www.augustalsina.com and follow him on Twitter: @AugustAlsina & Instagram: @AugustAlsina
