Legendary Hip-Hop martyr Tupac Shakur once said that which does not kill you will only make you stronger. If this sentiment is true, then Polk County Florida boy Flyy is one of the strongest individuals to ever pick up a microphone. After surviving the perils of growing up within the state’s foster system, the recent death of his only sister and enduring two years of adolescent blindness due to a birth defect, nothing will stand in the way of Flyy’s ascension to the top of the music industry.

With a half a dozen street-certified mixtapes already under his belt, the 20-something-year-old Flyy has been burning the blocks of central Florida with the most recent Summer release of his latest Tight Work Music offering Still Hungry and keeping dance floors packed from the top to the bottom of the Sunshine State with the heat-seeking club single “Blow Ya Back Out.”

“Down here, women love music that’s gone make them dance. You gotta cater to what’s gone make them bounce and make them move. The men are gonna follow suit,” he explains. “Once you get their attention, you can let them know about your life and the s*** you’ve been through.

He continues, “When you listen to Still Hungry, you get me. I talk about my life and speak to the people to let them know what I’ve been through. Anybody that’s been through something or struggled can listen to it and say ‘I’ve been through that.’ They gone feel me.”

Born Tyree Weston in Wichita, Kansas, Flyy moved to Florida with his mother at age eight. The family settled in the small town of Bartow (located right between Tampa and Orlando). By the time he was 12, young Tyree had started writing songs and dabbing into music. Known on the mic as Flyree (a spinoff of his government name), he joined a seven-member group called Convicted Felons. They kicked up dust around town off the strength of their local single “Handcuffing.” Before they gained enough momentum to take them to the next level, the group split up due to personal differences.

“We made music just to hear ourselves on the radio. We didn’t know about the business, but I learned so much while in the group- doing shows and networking with people,” says Flyy. “So when we split up, it gave me the foundation to keep going with music.”

Shortly after, Flyy lost focus for the music because he literally lost his vision. He was only 16. “Just imagine- on Tuesday, you are straight. You out balling with your dogs, but on Wednesday, you wake up and can’t see,” he remembers. “I still did my thing. It wasn’t like pitch dark. It was real blurry. Your eyes run a lot. You gotta keep moving. You can’t sit around the house and pout about it. I had hope because the doctors said they would do everything they could.”

Added to the drama of not being able to see clearly, Flyy’s mother was serving time in jail, so he and his sister were always in and out of different foster homes. It wasn’t until two years after the lights went out that Flyy would get the necessary coronary transplant in both eyes to restore his sight. “They say it was a birth defect,” says Flyy. “My mom was wild back then.”

Unfortunately, though, Flyy was not alone. His baby sister was born with a birth defect. At the age of 21, she succumbed to a heart attack. “They didn’t expect her to make it as long as she did,” he says.

But in the midst of all of his personal hardships, Flyy would always hold onto his love for making music. As soon as he got his sight back, he got back on his grind harder than ever. He scoured the state with demo CDs and performed at talent shows whenever he could.

On particular show was hosted by Paul Clark, brother of Chicago Bears tight end Desmond Clark. The two brothers were starting their new label Tight Work Music and were looking for new talent. When Paul saw Flyy on stage five years ago, he had to have him. Since Flyy signed with the upstart label, they ferociously beat the streets with back-to-back mixtape burners.

And on the Tight Work Music mixtape Still Hungry, Flyy proves once again the Clark Brothers’ sound artist investment with the scorching track “Wait A Minute” featuring rap goon Plies and the autobiographical “Tellin Everythang.”

“There are no excuses for anything you do. I done been through too much,” says Flyy. “Going through the experiences I been through, it ain’t nothing I can’t accomplish. It’s survival of the fittest.”