New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Kenneth Ray Trotter, better known as Trotter Water, is an American Rapper hailing from Columbia, Missouri. He began his journey in hip-hop in the 1990s, when Kris Kross debuted as a rap duo famous for wearing their clothes backward. Four years after discovering his passion for music, Trotter started freestyle rapping and penned amazing raps. As he grew older, his love for hip hop also bloomed, and the rap star wrote and performed raps as often as he could.
In November 1998, he made his debut stage performance at the Blue Note Columbia, MO, alongside fellow rappers. "Just being on the stage and seeing the crowd and their reactions, it felt so good," he said. "It felt so good. There is no other feeling."
Homeless at the young age of 16 to 18, then again from 19-20, Trotter Water found himself sleeping in laundry rooms and on the stairs at apartment complexes or at friends houses when possible! Throughout his early years, Trotter moved around a lot during his troubled times and found himself in North Carolina, Alabama, and Excelsior Springs, Missouri, where he was a part of the Job Corps.
There was turbulence ahead for the budding artist as his musical career was put on hold for over a decade when he was incarcerated. While in prison, he had time to self-reflect, and he concluded that his happiest moments were on stage performing. He also took the time to prepare for a life moving forward as he studied business management and the music industry for 4-5 years in the compound's library.
With nothing but time on his hands in prison, he wrote over 400 rap lyrics. The content of his raps was about his perspective on his life experiences. "A lot of it was basically on how I viewed life because, at the time, I felt that a lot of people turned their back on me because I was locked up," Trotter said. "A lot of my initial first drafts were angry and just hatred and just as a form of release."
Despite his past experiences, Trotter Water is not one to give up on his dreams and goals. Once he finished his prison term, he immediately picked up from where he left off, brushing off his skills and launching into the musical scenes to narrate his story through captivating lyrics and tunes. He has recorded three hip-hop mixtapes under his production company (Target Takeover Productions). He also starred as an opening act for Bone Crusher, Hurricane Chris, Luni Coleone and a few other artists.
Trotter Water not only focuses his time on his music and getting further ahead in the industry, but he also owns and operates a successful detailing service, A-1 Takeover Detailing Services based out of Columbia, MO.
In 2019, Trotter Water signed a management contract with JPS Productions out of Columbia, MO. Jason Schrick, the owner of JPS Productions and producer, would then arrange to record and produce Trotter's EP "Switching Lanes," at Universal
Music Group-Nashville. The title track of that EP was released in
September 2021 and made a significant splash on the airwaves. The soul-rending song was accompanied by a YouTube video, directed and produced by Jonathan Grajeda, and the entire "Switching Lanes" EP is on every music platform and is now available for streaming.
His debut EP under JPS Productions was also mixed by Multi-Platinum Record Producer/Mixer Malcolm Springer! Malcolm also created the beat "Phuck Your Thought" which is one of the tracks on the EP "Switching Lanes".
For Trotter Water, his brand of music is inspired by real-life events, and he wants his raps to reflect his own experiences and not just what the industry wants.
"Hip-hop is telling a story. It's about life experiences," he said. "I didn't want to fall into the trend of saying what people wanted to hear; if I have never lived it or haven't done it, I will not talk about it."
He has an interview segment with local businesses called "Water Wednesdays" on Facebook, where he spotlights businesses and local organizations. He also has a Facebook segment called "Is It Too Hot for Water," where he tests hot food for how spicy/hot it is. One notable segment is Hattie B's chicken in Nashville, TN.
Stay tuned for his next single and music video, "Take It Or Leave It", due out in the Spring/Summer of 2022 as well as a tour with fellow hip-hop artist Drew Lines of Stryker Records.
