High school student that made Billboard Hot 100 might be Toronto's next breakout star
It's not rare for people from Toronto to make it onto the Billboard Hot 100, but the latest one to make the chart is a teen who created his own music video while still in high school.
RealestK debuted on Hot 100 at No. 75 with WFM in October 2021, his first career entry on the chart.
He actually edited and the video for the track and uploaded it to YouTube from his high school according to an interview with Complex. Just 17, he's originally from Lebanon and grew up in Scarborough.
It includes footage of the artist ambling around outside noticeable landmarks like an LCBO and the CN Tower, and now has over 11 million views.
WFM has over 83 million streams on Spotify, and his other popular tracks all have millions of streams as well. His latest single which was just released on Feb. 18, Love Me, already has over a million streams.
Apparenly WFM owes much of its success to going viral on TikTok, becoming a popular option for scoring glow-up videos. It actually makes sense considering he actually started out doing TikTok covers.
It definitely feels like RealestK has something of a "Toronto" sound, with shades of The Weeknd, Drake and Justin Bieber in his light and airy R&B vocals.
Due to his success, Complex says he's now getting contacted by some of these artists, has signed to Columbia Records, and is even being mentored by The Weeknd's manager.
RealestK's Instagram bio calls him "Toronto's secret," but at this rate it won't stay that way for long.
Realest K publicist
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