WATA 

One word to describe Wata? Driven. And anyone who’s intent on taking the world by storm certainly needs drive. Growing up listening to Nas and rhyming since he was 7, this 17-year-old musician, actor, and comedian has what it takes to achieve his goals.

When he was seven, uptown Harrisburg native Wata began to write and perform rap music. Wata has played the clarinet since deciding to try out for his school band in fifth grade. And, because he is a young man that is up for a challenge, he tried his hand at playing the saxophone and has been playing both instruments ever since. One day, he plans to learn the guitar and drums, and would like to incorporate them in his music.

Wata’s music is influenced by old and new school artists such as: Nas, Tupac, and Drake, because “they all tell stories” and have “different styles of music”. He loves listening to classics like “Love’s Gonna Get You” by KRS-One, “Today Was A Good Day” by Ice Cube, and “Set It Off” by Big Daddy Kane. One day, he would like to work with The Dream, Ludacris, Trey Songz, and B.o.B.

Wata can also act and perform comedy, but he is currently focusing on his music because it “comes naturally”. But in the meantime, he has attended HACC Youth Theaters and plans on taking acting classes in the future. He began acting and doing comedy when he seven years old, and looks forward to performing. Wata would like to work with actors: Will Smith, Johnny Depp, and Jason Strayham, and looks up to comedians: Richard Pryor, Kat Rhodes, Eddie Murphy and Jaimee Foxx. One reason that Wata is proud of being a triple-threat is because he can “entertain people with more than one thing,” and he “like[s] to make people laugh.”

Wata plans to be a firefighter if his fame doesn’t pan out. Wata would like to be remembered “for what I say…[and] how funny I am. For my words.” He’s very serious when it comes to his home schooling, because even though his love is music, he understands that schoolwork comes first. “[People would be surprised by] how serious I am,” he believes.

At the end of the day, even though he dreams of fame, a big house, and fancy cars, “I’m nice…I have a lot of friends,” he says. “bottom line is, I‘m just a normal teenager, with very big dreams.”