Mr. 2-17 is Atlanta through-and-through, but despite being only 21 years old, he's not all that concerned with the music coming out of the region today. Hailing from the Eastside of the city known as Zone 6, the young artist grew up in the same area as rap icons like Future and Gucci Mane, but his obsession with ATL rap dates a little further back.
While rappers from his neighborhood created and morphed trap music into what it is today, 2-17's focus never broke from the early-00s movement of snap. A simpler and less aggressive derivative of the Atlanta-born phenomenon called crunk, snap encouraged dancing and chanting, giving it a decidedly inclusive feel. The movement which began in Bankhead was ridden to the top of the charts, with groups like Dem Franchize Boyz and D4L scoring gigantic hits, the latter of which cruising all the way to number one on Billboard with "Laffy Taffy".
2-17 pulls from this extremely popular but short-lived wave of ATL music, using many of the original sounds from the era in his FL Studio compositions, and through his love of rap, dance, and video, has created his own movement using its fundamentals.
Scoring some regional solo hits through his dance-oriented visuals, and producing for the likes of Travis Porter, Bankroll Fresh, and 2 Chainz, 2-17 has proved himself as an artist to watch. We caught up with the producer to talk about his influences, his range of talents, and his plans to change the sound of Atlanta rap once again.
