9781422270868

While some of the neighborhood streets were fraught with danger, inside those family walls was the making of a megastar. Megan’s mom was Holly Thomas, better known to many in the area by her rapping stage name Holly Wood. She would often bring Megan along to the recording studio while she worked, providing her with a peek behind the scenes of all that goes into the process of making music. Megan watched. She listened. She learned. She took it all in: her mom’s work ethic and commitment to her craft, the endless writing and re-writing of lyrics to get them so they flowed off the tongue just right, and finding the right beats to blend in perfectly with those carefully crafted words. At home, rap music frequently filled the house. Some of the early go-to favorites were NewYork rapper Biggie Smalls, Pimp C, southern rap duo UGK (UnderGround Kingz) that featured Bun B and Pimp C, and hip-hop group Three 6 Mafia. Soon, those trips to the studio evolved into battle rapping sessions along the drive, where daughter and mom bounced lyrics off the car windows, trying to outdo the other while challenging each other to be better and more creative. Throughout the long and rich history of music, many famous singers were introduced to the craft through the careers of their parents, going back decades to Tony Award-winner Liza Minnelli, daughter of Judy Garland, star of the original Wizard of Oz movie; all the way through to more recent times with Miley Cyrus, daughter of country music star Billy Ray Cyrus. During her middle school years, Megan was captain of the cheerleading team and a member of the dance team, but rap was always pulling at her heart. When she would see a group of boys involved in a rap battle, her mind would begin to whirl, and those creative juices started flowing. Words and verses would form in her head. She was always looking to keep her skills sharp, so even as she watched from the periphery , she was cultivating a skill set that now has few equals.

“Believe it or not, I used to be a little shy. I never wanted anybody to know that I could even rap.”

By the time she picked up her high school diploma, Megan was already turning heads on the Houston rap scene. In 2016, she released some of her

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A STAR IS BORN