Despite being born and raised in Brooklyn, Kai Cenat’s hip-hop journey didn’t start with legendary East Coast icons like The Notorious B.I.G., LL Cool J or Jay-Z.
During his recent Billboard cover interview, Cenat shared that his passion for hip-hop ignited during his teenage years thanks to Bronx artist A Boogie Wit da Hoodie, who’s made appearances on Cenat’s Twitch channel. The streaming star actually spent his early years jamming almost exclusively to Michael Jackson before discovering rap.
“Growing up, I did straight Michael Jackson up until high school,” Cenat told the publication. Speaking about discovering A Boogie’s music, Cenat added, “That was my real transition. I went from Michael Jackson to A Boogie, and I explored from then on.”
Back in January, A Boogie Wit da Hoodie popped up on Cenat’s Twitch channel, which came several months after Cenat took the director’s chair for A Boogie’s “Did Me Wrong” music video.
Ever since launching his Twitch presence in 2021, Cenat’s channel has become a hotspot for major rap stars including Nicki Minaj, Lil Uzi Vert, Ice Spice, Quavo and others, with many dropping by during his epic Mafiathon 2 subathon.
“I just think it’s the creativity,” Cenat told Billboard about why artists feel at home on his Twitch. “This is just the vibe I give off, like on my stream. I try to make it as fun as possible. And being able to, like, break ice with anybody who comes on.”
