We’re excited to introduce you to a Chicago native and exciting up-and-comer, Aurelius “Trey” Raines III aka. The Third. Following his recent self-released EP, The Director’s Cut, showcasing a snippet into the movie. His nascent discography tells us about the obstacles he faced throughout childhood, where religion and poetry guided him to the truth and molded him into the artist he is today. The Third has a gift for unpacking plenty of admiral lessons that catch up with the present; showing his reason behind every intention given.  Production alone accommodates each track as he sonically merges the unknown with lyrical optimism blending Yin and Yang. A poet, rapper, and educator, he continues inspiring change and higher thinking to document the stories of the underrepresented. Coming back into the light with a visual for the EP, we caught up with our friend The Third to find out what he’s looking forward to in the year ahead. 

Hello! How have you been this year?

Hey! I’m living well. I’ve gotta be honest though, this year has been such a trying time. I’ve had a whole lot of ups and downs, a litany of roadblocks I’ve had to overcome, and I’ve learned a lot about myself I didn’t know before. A lot has changed within the last year, some things I could’ve gone without, others I'm grateful for. Regardless, I’m blessed to have even made it to where I am.

Tell us a little about the past couple of years with receiving the John Walt Foundation award and educating the youth?

I think that receiving the John Walt Foundation Scholarship was one of the largest and most pivotal (Pun intended) blessings that I’ve had in the last year. Besides the monetary reward, receiving the scholarship helped push me in so many different ways. The connections and resources that I was given access to opened up so many alternative avenues for my work going forward. The “big homies” and mentors that I now can easily reach out to have lent so much of their mind and time to me, and that’s something I will never forget. To know that there is a group of people behind you that believe in your vision enough to fund it with their time and money and only want to see you succeed and excel is an unmatched feeling that has fueled my creativity and drive for future projects and challenges to come. Even more importantly, over the last 3+ years, I’ve received enough help and resources from my mentors and sponsors that I’ve found myself (on multiple occasions) to be in a position to help other people and create a safe space/platform for them. On top of being a full-time teacher, the opportunities and tools I’ve been given to help other young people with their passions have been very fruitful and impactful on so many levels. From my students at the various schools I’ve taught at, to the young people at YouMedia, seeing them grow and do great things has been amazing.

Some of your inspirations like Femdot and Pivot Gang have made an impact on your life. Where do you feel you stray from the pack?

I have a whole lot of love for all these people. Coming up in Chicago, a lot of them were amazing role models as artists and as people. When I was about 15, I wrote a song called “Soundcloud Rapper,” talking about my desire to be more than just a “hobby rapper” or the popularly belittling term “Soundcloud Rapper.” I referenced a lot of people who were then teachers and “big homies” that inspired me to keep creating and push myself. Whereas at first I watched and studied from afar, I’ve been blessed to get closer to a lot of those people and call them friends over time. I think being surrounded by that much talent for so long has really influenced the quality of my writing and solidified a good foundation for my art. I believe I’ve been blessed with a wealth of knowledge way beyond my years that has given me a broader viewpoint on life, and a lot of that came from church. Having two teachers and writers as parents, I’ve always had a very intentional way of communicating. When I write my music, I want every narrative to be vivid. Storytelling is a huge part of black culture, and I always try to utilize that so people can feel the music. I believe my work achieves that immersive experience every time, which automatically makes it way more than rap.

After following you for some time, a constant theme we’ve seen is the outlook of your life as a movie - with that in mind, what part are we witnessing right now?

I absolutely love this question! Right now, I am in a very complex part of my life. In the midst of this pandemic, balancing my energy between my dream career and my current one, and the typical changes that come with life as an adult, this is not a particularly exciting time, but in film, this period of time would be called “conflict rising action.” As an artist, this is the most open and personal I’ve ever been with the outside world about my life, which has been a huge challenge for me. The goal while working on this album was to be as transparent as possible with all the processes and details. I want my listeners to feel involved and in the know about the journey of the album, which is why we’ve documented every session, think piece, and outline since the first day in the studio. As uninteresting as some of the processes may be, I want this conflict rising action to be documented in every way possible. It reminds me of my humanity and contributes to the grandiosity of the final product.

Diving into your discography and listening to The Director's Cut, you have a tremendous way of showing plot progression throughout your life. I looked into your Instagram and saw those freestyles from 2018. What were you trying to show with those videos?

In 2018 I was in school and had a hard time making time for music. I really wanted to be able to drop my first project and take music more seriously, but between school and work, I never had enough time. Around this time, there was a surge of rappers and artists showcasing their work through social media videos. Instantly I started thinking about ways I could show people these songs without the time or bread to book the studio sessions. At the time of those videos, I hadn’t been out of high school for too long, and I wanted to show how good I could be if I gave my music even a little more time than I had at the moment. I have a lot of love for my homies and my peers, but I’m also super competitive, so being able to just record bars over some of my favorite instrumentals in the car has been my way to flex my lyricism in between dropping music.

I really want to talk about your recent music video - you worked with Jacc James on Threestyle (Extended Version), what was the production process during recording and what did that express to you?

That video is definitely the best and my personal favorite of visuals I have out right now. When I thought about the list of visuals I wanted for the EP, I knew I wanted to shoot a fire intro scene. The Director’s Cut EP is a preface to the album, so I thought a lot about how these visuals would contribute and tie into it. “Director’s Cut Threestyle” is the first official installment of a series of “Threestyles” where I start off every project I create with bar-heavy exposition. Just raps. When Jacc and I sat down, it was kind of difficult explaining the idea, as I was still trying to formulate the full plan in my own head, but Jacc understood almost immediately. The opening of the video is one of my favorite parts of the video, where I am sitting at my desk working and reading the thesis for the EP, slowly followed by the tagline for the album. The setup was super crucial, which is why we took so much time with it. Down to the details in the video, there are so many minute parts of this process that we knew we had to include, realizing they are only minute in size and not in value. Huge thanks to Jacc James, Logan Reilly, and Matt Hanssen for an amazing visual.

Your lyrics reflect self-encouragement and resourcefulness. What are some challenges that you face with music or general life that you got to be your own hype man?

Growing up as a black man in Chicago, I naturally adopted the mindset of working with what I have. I grew up in a very supportive household that gave me as much as they could when it came to resources and advice, but a lot of the ground I’ve covered in the last few years has been a result of a lot of trial, error, and improvisation. I talk about that a lot in my “Logout Remix.” As inspiring as it is being surrounded by all these talented artists, sometimes it can be a lot of pressure to be great and super successful. As an artist, there are times I spend so much time alone with my head down in my work, that I’m either not aware of how far I’ve come, or how far I have left to go. In situations like that I constantly have to hype myself up and remind myself that I am way more than what I have access to and an even better artist than I think if I can make the best out of what I have.

How would you describe the evolution of your sound in the music currently out compared to what listeners heard from you so far?

Growing up I listened to a lot of Kanye, Common, and Lecrae. Early on, a lot of my music reflected that of the artists I looked up to, and focused a lot on where I wanted to be. As I got older, I became more in touch with where I was at the moment, and more self aware. Reading more books really helped my vocabulary and word choice. I think after 10 year of rapping, I’ve entered my experimental phase of my artistry. I don’t mind trying out new sounds whether it’s the beat or my own voice. I’m very comfortable in my form, and what I have coming next is gonna showcase my comfort and versatility better than anything you’ve ever heard from me.

Eyes forward to 2021, are there any upcoming plans that you can share with the people?!

I can comfortably announce now that my first album is projected to debut toward the end of the summer this year. Part 3: A Visual is my first full length, movie-themed album that will be paired with a short film. I’ve had the honor of working with a litany of amazing musicians, producers, photographers, videographers, and engineers to get this done and I can confidently say this will be one of the greatest pieces of art to come out of 2021.