Kempi

Kempi is a Dutch rapper from Eindhoven who made his Top Ten solo album debut in 2008. Born Jerrel Lloyd Kemperveen on May 4, 1988, in Curaçao, a Caribbean island that is part of the Netherlands Antilles, he grew up in Eindhoven, a city in the south of the Netherlands. After experiencing a difficult childhood in an impoverished family, in addition to run-ins with the law, Kempi turned his passion for rap music into a career path. He first established himself as a rapper in 2006 with the mixtape Tsss Kempi, which was hosted by DJ One-2 of the local DJ/production crew SpinMasters. This initial mixtape led to a recording contract with Top Notch Records, a Dutch rap label based in Amsterdam. In 2007 Kempi released two mixtapes on the label, Mixtape 2: Rap 'n' Borie and Mixtape 3, the former of which featured the underground rap hit “Zoveel Stress.” Kempi then made his full-length album debut with Du Zoon (2008). Released by Top Notch in association with Universal Music, Du Zoon reached the Top Ten of the Dutch albums chart and featured the singles “Stratiblues” and “Wakker in du Cel.” Het Testament van Zanian Adamus followed in 2011. ~ Jason Birchmeier