DePaul College Prep has many things to offer including sports, clubs, and academics — but one thing that does not get talked about often is the powerful musical talent of some students. With over 140 monthly listeners and 310,000 streams on her most popular song, Senior Sakkiyah Brown is making a name for herself both inside and outside of DePaul College Prep’s community.

Brown started her process when she was only eight years old. 

“Back then, I was writing my own lyrics and finding beats off YouTube,” Brown said.

Quickly, her love of producing took off and she has already written and released seventeen songs. With 3 albums finished, another is on the way. “The album ‘Reflex’ is dropping hopefully around October.” 

You might think Brown has an elaborate process to find her creative spirit, yet it comes completely naturally for her. 

“Usually, I’ll be in class, and I’ll think of a lyric and write it down to use for a song later,” Brown explains.

After crafting the lyrics, the song doesn’t take much longer to create. “I can have the whole song finished in thirty minutes.”

Even more impressive, her album “Pleasing Everyone,” was finished within a week.

Brown’s music career started with the inspiration of many famous artists. “My favorite artists were Kehlani and Mac Miller.” While listening to these artists gave her inspiration, her family also heavily influenced her style to be what it is now. “Growing up around my family who listened to R&B and hip hop was something I really connected with. My dad has been doing music my whole life.”

With more than three hundred thousand streams, her song “YEA OK” has quickly become her most popular yet. “That song was written for a Vans competition,” Brown said. “I found out about the competition the week of.”

Brown continued, “I had to finish it in a day.” Even in the short timeline given, she managed to create one of her most popular pieces.

It didn’t take long for the song to circulate school grounds. “The song is in my liked album on Spotify,” said senior Ernie Allen. Another senior, Ellie Huber, loves Sakkiyah’s “dedication to her music.” Many kids throughout her grade have expressed that they “hope to see more from her in the coming years, especially with her new album dropping.”

Not only has Brown already accomplished so much, but she is planning on more.

“I want to actually get merch.” But not only that, Brown explains, “I’m hoping by 2025 maybe I can do a little tour.”