Kid Rapper (package only)

We’ll meet a 13-year-old Grammy-nominated rapper with an anti-bullying message.

Transcript:

RICK DEBRUHL: YOU PROBABLY KNOW A FEW 13-YEAR-OLDS, BUT DO YOU KNOW MANY WHO HAVE ALREADY PLOTTED OUT THEIR CAREER? WE MET ONE WHO IS TRYING TO MAKE HIS MARK ON THE WORLD. PRODUCER BLAKELY MCHUGH AND PHOTOGRAPHER ROB MCJANNETT INTRODUCED US TO A KID RAPPER WHO HAS A MESSAGE.

BLAKELY MCHUGH: 13-YEAR-OLD FRANKIE VIERA IS NOT A TYPICAL TEENAGE BOY. INSTEAD OF SPENDING WEEKDAYS IN THE CLASSROOM, HE SPENDS TIME IN THE STUDIO RECORDING MUSIC. FRANKIE CAUGHT THE BUG EARLY AFTER SEEING SOME OF THE GROUPS HIS DAD MANAGED PERFORM.

FRANKIE VIERA: TOUCHED MY HEART. SEEING YOU CAN SEE EVERYTHING. MY DAD WENT IN THE STUDIO AND THAT'S WHEN THE RECORDING FIRST STARTED.

BLAKELY MCHUGH: HE RECORDED HIS FIRST SONG, "LOOK AT ME" WHEN HE WAS JUST 9 YEARS OLD. SINCE THEN HE RECORDED 14 SONGS.

FRANKIE VIERA: I TREAT IT AS A HOBBY. BUT FRANKIE'S SONGS ARE NOT ALL ABOUT BEING A TEEN. HE'S ALSO TRYING TO SEND A MESSAGE.

BLAKELY MCHUGH: IN FOURTH GRADE, HE WAS A VICTIM OF BULLYING. THE SONG "SAY SOMETHING" TELLS A STORY OF KIDS WHO ARE VICTIMIZED.

FRANKIE VIERA: CAN GET BULLIED ON THE NEWS, AT SCHOOL, WHEN I USED TO GO TO A PUBLIC SCHOOL. THAT'S WHAT INSPIRED ME. I WENT TO THE STUDIO AND WROTE IT. YOU DON'T WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE. BECAUSE IT'S CAUSING A LOT OF NEGATIVITY FOR THE KIDS.

BLAKELY MCHUGH:THE SONG STRUCK A CHORD. IT WAS NOMINATED FOR A GRAMMY IN 2016. GOING UP AGAINST HEAVYWEIGHT ARTISTS LIKE DRAKE AND NIKI MINOGE. HIS DAD IS NOT SURPRISED BY THE SUCCESS.

FRANK VIERA: AWESOME FOR HIM TO BE ABLE TO SPEAK ABOUT WHAT HE SEES ON THE STREETS TO HAVE A VOICE AT A YOUNG AGE. YOU KNOW, TO BE ABLE TO -- TO IMPROVISE TO OTHER KIDS AND HAVE HIS WHEREABOUTS AND GET KIDS TO PAY ATTENTION TO HIM. THAT'S A BEAUTIFUL STORY.

BLAKELY MCHUGH: FRANKIE IS DETERMINED TO TELL MORE. SUCCESS DROPPING OUT OF MIDDLE SCHOOL AND STARTING ON-LINE SCHOOL.

FRANK VIERA: BEFORE WE GOT INVOLVED IN ARIZONA RETRO ACADEMY, IT WAS DIFFICULT FROM TEACHERS SAYING HE WAS MISSING SO MANY DAYS, HIS MOM HAVING TO GO IN AND GET HOMEWORK. WE WERE CONSTANTLY MISSING TWO, THREE WEEKS AT A TIME OUT OF A MONTH.

BLAKELY MCHUGH: NOW, FRANKIE GETS TO JUGGLE A SCHOOL AND STUDIO AT HIS OWN PACE. HE LIKES THE FLEXIBILITY BUT NOT WITHOUT SACRIFICE.

FRANKIE VIERA: THE DIFFERENCE IS YOU'RE AT HOME. NOT WITH OTHER KIDS LIKE -- YOU DON'T SEE THE TEACHER IN PERSON, YOU DON'T SEE THE OTHER KIDS IN PERSON. IT'S JUST YOU ON THE LAPTOP FOR FIVE OR SIX HOURS.

BLAKELY MCHUGH: WITH THE STUDIO CALLING AND FUTURE GRAMMIES ON THE LINE, FRANKIE IS GOING TO KEEP PLUGGING AWAY, BEING A KID AND BEING A RECORDING ARTIST. ONE WITH THE MESSAGE THAT ONLY A TEEN CAN TELL.

RICK DEBRUHL: BY THE WAY, FRANKIE IS SET TO RELEASE MORE SONGS THIS SUMMER. WEDNESDAY ON ARIZONA HORIZON, DISCUSS THE OPEN YOUED EPIDEMIC IN ARIZONA AFTER THE GOVERNMENT DECLARES AN EMERGENCY. THAT'S WEDNESDAY AT 5:30 HERE ON ARIZONA HORIZON. THAT'S ALL FOR THIS EDITION OF "ARIZONA HORIZON." SEE YOU BACK HERE TOMORROW