izzyhoey2: Flo Rida's Hustle Finally Pays Off, On 'This Is How I Made It'

Friday, November 16, 2012

Flo Rida's Hustle Finally Pays Off, On 'This Is How I Made It'

Flo recalls the death of his sister, and how it drove him to succeed, on 'This Is How I Made It,' airing November 17 at 12 p.m. on MTV.
By James Montgomery

Flo Rida on "This Is How I Made It"
Photo: MTV News

For , failure was never an option. And on the latest episode of MTV's he remembers wanting to make a name for himself in the music business, no matter what the cost ... except, it would seem, working a 9-5 job.

"I recall being in 12th grade, and we had like a month left in school and I was like 'What am I going to do with myself?'" he said. "I stayed in nothing but honor classes, but I always envisioned myself become a superstar. I didn't want to work a 9-5; 9-5s take away from what I'm doing. It was never, never in my mind to do anything else, other than just give my all to the music."

After graduating, he moved out to Las Vegas to live with his sister, and continued to chase his dream; even if everyone around him thought he'd be better off hitting the books instead of the recording studio.

"My sister, who's like a year older than me, helped me get in school. I recall going to UNLV for like a month, because of the fact that music stayed on my mind," he explained. "I would go to different studios, I would look in the Yellow Pages and call up different record companies, tell them I wanted to bring a demo."

And, as you're probably aware, Flo's hustle finally paid off. But along the way, he paid a terrible price: he lost one of his sisters, a death that served as additional motivation, driving him to succeed and pay tribute to her memory.

"I stayed out in La Vegas about two years, and during that time, I had a sister down in Miami, she was dealing with bronchitis, and I recall her telling me 'Come home, I want to see you!' and I didn't let nothing come between me and my music, I mean, absolutely nothing," he said. "[And] one day, my boy called me up and was like 'Man, your sister passed away.' And when that happened, it really took me to a whole other level, like ... her name was Julia, and I was very close to her, and I told myself that I was going to do this for my sister."

Catch more of Flo Rida's story on the latest episode of "This Is How I Made It," airing Saturday, November 17 at 12 p.m.

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