Being from one of the world’s most diverse cities, rapper Kid Kwazii has always tuned into different genres. While the Canadian rapper leans toward hip hop in terms of recording, he has an eclectic nature that reflects in his songs.

Summer and Lyrical Sh.t are his latest releases. Both songs are produced by the Toronto-born artiste who has been recording songs for five years.

He told the Jamaica Observer that while he is still learning the ropes, he prefers to produce his songs.

“When you create something from the ground up you know you have a little more control of what you’re doing,” said Kid Kwazii.

Another song he did from scratch was Link. Of all his productions, that single stands out for more than one reason.

“It’s one of my favourite songs because I took two weeks at my grandfather’s studio just building it from the ground up. It’s really a whole and complete song,” said Kid Kwazii.

His grandfather is rocksteady legend Leroy Sibbles, former lead singer of The Heptones and bass player extraordinaire. Sibbles also lived in Canada for over 20 years and helped develop that country’s reggae scene.

Kid Kwazii (real name Jaydus States) has loved early hip hop since his youth. He never tires of Slick Rick, Biz Markie and Big Daddy Kane, and also has special admiration for giants like Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson and Prince.

Leroy Sibbles has always been in the mix, though he never appreciated his legacy until recently.

“I just thought like he was this reggae artiste but I never knew how international he was. I was going to his concerts and I was like, he’s my grandfather,” said Kid Kwazii.

While he has become more aware of Jamaican acts like The Heptones, King Kwazii is currently working on building his own catalogue with songs such Manhunt and Gyalis.