Born during the emergence of hip hop as a culture, Kelven Hunter Jr., popularly referred to as "Shootermakaveli," or "ShooterMAC" entered life in the 1980’s. Growing up in a neighborhood known as "Acres Home," located on the well known north side of Houston, Texas. Shootermakaveli experienced tragedy early in his childhood when his grandmothers home burned to the ground, killing his grandfather. After the loss of his childhood home, ShooterMAC and his grandmother relocated to the northeastern side of Houston where he graduated from SMILEY high school under the stern upbringing of his grandmother. " I think I developed an ear for music in my younger days riding in the car with my dad," Shootermakaveli reminisced to his first run-in with hip hop at the age of 7. "I remember when I first heard “A Pocket Full of Stones” by UGK... and that just did something to my mind..." Other influences came directly from the streets of Houston, as Scarface and Chamillionaire stood up for his home city. As life continuously threw Shootermakaveli curve balls, he was constantly ridiculed for being the new kid from the other side of town, and also the darkest. Isolating himself from the taunts, Shootermakaveli grabbed his pen and went to work. He would lose himself in the hip hop that bonded him with his father. Deeper and more detailed his rap passion became, and along with it came a fast -paced freestyle that he became known for during his time attending Jarvis Christian College in Hawkins, <br>