By Dylan Deprey
EP wielding his keyboard following a performance at a gas station on Milwaukee’s Northside. (Photo by Erick Perkins)
At 8-years-old, Erick “EP” Perkins had become a street performer playing his keyboard for subway travelers in Chicago.
He would sing. He would rap. He would entertain those wallowing in the corridors on frigid winter nights with a smile on his face.
Performing was his way of relieving the stressors that came along through his life.
He moved back and forth between Chicago and Milwaukee with his family, and still performed.
Both his mother and step-father had died, and his real father was a drug addict whom he had not seen since 12-years-old. Yet, he stayed positive living with his older brother, and perform with a smile on his face.
He described the hardships of living with his brother in a freestyle, “Me and my brothers slept in a car for two months, clothes in a bag, it was all in the trunk, He took me to school and I ain’t get free lunch, I was so young, no money or none, My third eye in mind saying pick up a gun, but I picked up a pen.”
Now at 22-years-old he still performs for his community, though the location has changed slightly, one will most likely find him singing and rapping with his keyboard set up in gas stations somewhere throughout Milwaukee.
“I use my talents to help give back to the community by inspiring others and young people,” Perkins said. “You can do music. You can rap, you can play piano instead of picking up a gun start killing each other and going to funerals.”
Perkins has the track record to prove that there is hope, when there is hard work, persistence and a dream.
He has worked and performed with some of his biggest influences including Usher and Twista.
“Man I look up to them because outside of their music they do work in the community,” Perkins said.
In 2009, Perkins joined Usher’s New Look Milwaukee program, which works with underserved youth through a 10-year comprehensive program to transform their lives and develop passion driven, global leaders.
Through the program Perkins has worked and performed with Usher.
Perkins also got a major shout out on social media from the once world record holder for fastest rapper, Twista.
“We were just sitting on the bus and everybody had their heads down, so I decided I was going to entertain them. I did the fastest rap I could do,” Perkins said. “I never thought he would see it, and share it. Then it went viral.”
He also opened for Twista two years ago at the Miramar Theater.
Perkins said he ultimately wants his music to reach out to the kids, and be a positive influence in the community.
“A lot of these kids don’t think they’re going to make it past the age of 21. All they know is the fast life, getting bag off of stealing cars, robbing people, and it’s the people they surround themselves with,” Perkins said.
He recently got to meet with some young adults in Milwaukee County Jail, and not because he was visiting.
After performing at local gas station on Jan. 20, he was pulled over my MPD. Perkins said the gas station clerk approved his performance ahead of time, and was given half of the tips he earned. He believes it was the clerk who had called the police on him, and was booked for overdue court fees from 2015.
“The world, my family and friends all knew I shouldn’t have been in there,” Perkins said.
Over his ten days in jail, he spoke with inmates his age and younger. He described a scene where he met a young man who had stolen a car with an infant in the backseat, and left it on the curb.
“I asked him, ‘What do you want to do with your life?’ He was like ‘Man I don’t know,’” Perkins said. “I want to show them that they have that spark in them, and can be successful.”
Even through all the obstacles that stand in Perkins’ way, he will always be positive and keep smiling.
“That is why the world doesn’t like me, that can’t get me unhappy,” Perkins said. “Even jail couldn’t get me unhappy, I performed for the guards two nights in a row.”
Following the minor setback, Perkins is working on new music with his music partner Terrell Lewis and older brother Boo. He is also excited for the release of “53206: The Movie,” which he had a role in.
“Whether it’s singing, rapping, drawing, acting, comedy, public speaking, use your talents,” Perkins said. “I just want these kids to be in the light, because they already shine, they just don’t know it yet.”
EP would personally like to thank his Big Brother Boo, Terrell Lewis, Mrs. Sue, Reggie Brown/ V100.7, Usher’s New Look, Jacob Latimore and MzKim Productions.