Ryan Anthony Lorde aka Littles was born in Toronto, Canada, 24 years ago. After his mother broke with her drug dependent husband, he began life in notorious Uniacke Square, in the North End of Halifax, Nova Scotia. It was in the Uniacke housing projects that Ryan Lorde was fashioned into Littles
Earning the name at a young age because of his smaller then average frame, he had a lot to prove being the smaller man on the block. With monolithic ambitions, a drive to match, he quickly earned his stripes, graduating from Littles to Littles the General. That there is nothing little inside the head of Ryan Lorde is obvious when he speaks.
The story of how he got to where he is now reads like a Hollywood screenplay. Although raised by a very caring mother who wanted nothing but the best for her only son and two sisters, the lure of the streets that were just outside his window was too much to resist. While she worked hard to provide as much as she could, there was no father on the scene, and Littles was soon hustling on the corner.
To provide security for his mother and sisters, and get the things all young males lust for, he learned the trade of the streets and took to it. While never really aspiring to be a criminal, he didnt have the luxury of options. He applied for legitimate jobs only to be discouraged at the lack of serious consideration. Also, Halifax was and is also a city where generations of racism, which made it tough to be a young black male and go straight.
He got his first taste for the limelight at 12 years old when at a local concert invited some of the younger kids on stage. Anxiously waving his hand to get the attention of the MC, he was the one that fate pulled up before the crowd. He kicked a little freestyle to acknowledge the first feel for the attention he would love for the rest of his life. A seed was planted deep inside of Ryans soul that would take years to sprout and only recently started to bear fruit.
While spending his adolescent years on the street, growing up with some of the most infamous gangsters and learning the game through them, hip hop music was never too far off. He would play around with it as most kids his age did, rapping along with the music that went with his life.Early in grade 10, when he was a promising rookie on the schools basketball team, he was expelled for an incident that left him with a criminal record. What most would consider a school yard scrap was categorized as assault and trumped up with a dash of other offences. This incident put the young offender under house arrest. When he applied to continue classes at another high school close to his home, he was denied entrance for technical reasons. With no school in reasonable proximity and a lot of free time on his hands, he did what came natural.
Instead of studying Catcher in the Rye Littles was on the block. He had always been close to his cousins and best friends, Leanthan and Tyrone Oliver. Thee small group took to the streets, watching and learning from Tyrone. While older brothers and relatives tried to dissuade the younger boys away from a street lifestyle that can be dangerous and frequently lethal, they were too enchanted with the excitement and promise of quick money.
On July 20, 2000, Tyrone was shot multiple times and did not survive. The case remains unsolved. Shortly after, Littles found himself in more trouble. While sitting in a jail cell, contemplating his life and seeing how many people he knew were in this same institution, he knew he needed a plan. Thats where Triple Threat was devised as a collaborative effort of the boys to stay off the street and far away from the cell. Music was the only option for a young black male with a record and a grade 10 education to survive.
Enter Tremayne Howe aka Trobiz. An already well established producer hailing from Montreal, but based in Halifax, he puts Littles on a song. The event announces Littles' arrival. It doesnt take the man with grand visions long to get his name known and recognised as a threat. Not to the streets of Halifax but to the hip hop scene. Through uncanny natural ability to rhyme, a keenly observant eye to the streets, and an agile tongue to deliver it as he sees it, he lives up to the title of his mixtapes, Takeover Volume 1 & 2. Like drugs, these sell hand to hand: Takeover 1 selling over 4500 copies, with Volume 2 selling over 13000 copies, strictly hand to hand. Takeover 2 includes a promotional DVD, a personal tour of the neighbourhood that raised him; the video introduces viewers to a cast of players in the hip hop scene that no one even knew existed. Thanks to Littles, the real underground will soon be well exposed.
As well as acknowledging business influences, Littles credits Jay-Z as a musical mentor, as his sound is grittier than the chauffeur driven Sean Carter, Littles blends the business mind of a C.E.O with the gutter edge of the hungry mcs of the New York mixtape circuit, namely Graph and Papoose. Lil Wayne has always been admired as someone who shares Littles' age and view of the world.
Littles has held his own and ranks very highly in the most telling of freestyle battles in his hometown, bringing it to the chests of long time and heavily respected mcs without fear.
In his short time performing, he has performed as far away as Bermuda where he won 2 awards including 2005 L.A. Virgil Artist of the Year and 2006 was nominated for 6 awards, has a large fan base in Canada Parts Of The USA and all over Europe. He has opened up for platinum selling acts like Snoop, The Game, Guru, Too short, Juelz Santana, Joe Budden, 112. Mobb Deep, And many more. The coming year is a busy one with a tour planned to go along with his New Album Titled Publicity Stunt. His Last Project, I Can Make You Famous a Mixtape & DVD recently reached sales of over 35000 units sold (Which Boasts Features by S.A.S, Lil Wayne and St Laz). His new super group The Offense Which Consists Of A Collective of Canadas Hardest Working Artists All Under One Movement Has Been Making Waves All Over Canada & Thru The Usa. His album & Mixtape Titled Publicity Stunt Shows The Hard Work Littles Has Been Putting In With Features By Artists Such As Bun B Of UGK, J Hood, Geolani, Freeway, Rick Ross, Jae Millz, The Legendary Kool G Rap, Bezel The Beast Of Dipset and more.
I do this because I have to, he claims. I have to give this one hundred percent im from the streets what choices do I have at being successful at anything other then this?
Its a hard point to argue when you look at all he has accomplished in the short time he has taken Music seriously. All doubts are dashed when speaking with him, where his raw ambition and get-this-down-right-now attitude come through. He knows nobody owes him anything but if he wants something, he better go and get it for himself. Thats exactly what he plans to do.
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