October 9, 2019

Meet Rene Ruiz of WLF Records in Homestead

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rene Ruiz.

Rene, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Music has played a huge role in my life since a very young age. I remember writing raps and R&B songs in my notebook, and performing them for my mom. I used to make videos reciting Drake songs with my little brother. Music has always been therapeutic for me as well. No matter what I was going through, I would always turn to my notebook to vent, or to speak up even if no one was listening. I’ve written pages upon pages throughout middle school, high school, and even college. However, music always seemed intangible and out of reach. While I listened to legendary artists (Drake, Wayne, Kanye, Jay-Z, and J. Cole when I got older) who would tell their story and explain how it was possible, I always felt like destiny or even God just created those people for that purpose. They weren’t real to me. But as I grew older along with the internet, I started watching artists evolve, grow, and achieve that same goal. Because of this, my close friends (Steve and Freddy) and I decided to give it a shot. I started recording, engineering, mixing, and mastering their songs. We began to binge-watch interview after interview. The Breakfast Club, Sway, Big Boy, and several other radio stations/hosts became our textbook and guide for the rap game. I soon stumbled upon an artist named Russ and his music. This became the first person who made our goal seem tangible. He was someone who had the entire journey documented and played every studio role himself. He inspired me to start making beats, perfect my engineering, and begin to rap on my own. He taught me that it’s possible to do everything yourself and that my work would pay off. That a childhood dream could actually be real. I struggled with rapping and becoming comfortable with my voice, creating and deleting song after song. But the more I practiced the better I became, and I am where I am now. There’s not many people that can do what I do or can create what I can create, especially not in the amount of time that I’ve been doing this. The journey is long and it has only begun, but blowing up is inevitable.

Has it been a smooth road?
It hasn’t been a smooth road by any means. In the last few years after high school I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression, all while trying to perfect my sound in order the express it. While my thoughts and visions were ready to release a song, to vent to the world, my music wasn’t and I refused to put anything out if it didn’t sound perfect to me. I didn’t want people to hear my story, and not be able to truly listen to it. I ended up keeping several things bottled up and struggled with my own self-belief, self-love, and confidence issues. This caused me to distance myself from my friends (who I lived with for some time) and family (even my own mother) in order to find my purpose, think for myself, and learn to love who I really am. I felt trapped in my home and felt like I couldn’t make any decisions for myself. I needed to step away in order to become my own man. After much trial and error in the studio I was finally able to reach a level of sound quality that I was comfortable with releasing, and spoke upon these issues in my song titled “Pain”. This was my first song and first step into the game all produced, written, mixed, and mastered by me. I still struggle with these issues and I continue to distance myself from time to time. But I know that one day I’ll be able to tell my story through the music, find a place where I can be happy with myself, and be able to provide for my family and friends. I want to give them clarity and show them that everything had a deeper meaning and purpose.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with WLF Records – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I decided to start my own label/brand entitled WLF Records. WLF (Wolf) stands for “With Love & Faith”. I personally believe that with love and faith, anything and everything is possible. This not only reflects my journey with music, but my journey with finding self-love and happiness. I do everything myself and that’s what separates me from everyone else. I make my own beats, write my own lyrics, record my own vocals, and mix & master every single song. I speak my truth and make music from the heart. I do what I love to do and want that to be recognized and appreciated. Many people want fame, “clout”, and money. I just want people to love me for who I am and to provide for my family and friends all off of my music. That is what real music is about.

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I have a love-hate relationship with living in Miami. I love how everyone seems to know each other, everyone city city is part of one giant family. This makes it easy to grow and connect with people, or even keep in touch with people. I have friends from middle school and high school who I still see on a daily basis at the gym or even at work. Anywhere you go it will feel like home. However, sometimes this can be overwhelming. At times it becomes mentally strenuous to socialize with so many people at once. On top of that, it can make you question if someones love for you is genuine or not. While I think you can become a star no matter where you are from, I feel like some people might be right when they say that Miami has its limitations because of these reasons. I plan on representing where I’m from throughout my career, and to give South Florida a better name. People are very obsessed with the club and party scene and have given the wrong people a giant platform. I want to help give real artists the respect and recognition that they deserve.

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