Rapper Midwxst Rises from the Middle of the Map

Photo provided by Geffen Records, Midwxst will perform Nov. 13 as part of the Day N Vegas festival in Las Vegas.

In his official Geffen Records biography, Midwxst is described as a rapper who grew up in a “small town.”
To Indiana residents, it’s probably a stretch to refer to Carmel – the Indianapolis suburb that’s home to
100,000 residents, more than 100 traffic roundabouts plus mansions owned by Colts owner Jim Irsay
and Lucas Oil founder Forrest Lucas – as a small town.

But that doesn’t make Midwxst’s rise in the hip-hop world any less unusual.
Perhaps a dozen Indiana rappers have been affiliated with major recording companies during hip-hop’s
48-year history. At 18, Midwxst is one of the youngest, and he’s surely the first to grow up in Carmel and
graduate from private school Park Tudor.

Born Edgar Sarratt III, he’s the son of Air Force veteran Edgar and human resources executive Karin.
“It sounds weird hearing a rapper talk about how he came up in Carmel,” Midwxst says. “But that’s where
I’ve lived for the majority of my years.”

The rapper performed for all-ages audiences at the Emerson Theater in Indianapolis, and he routinely
visited suburban Avon and Plainfield to hang out with friends.

Although it’s not uncommon for musicians to say they want to represent their hometown, Midwxst chose
a stage name that blankets multiple states. Because of his parents’ work commitments, Midwxst lived in
several states after his birth in Columbia, South Carolina.

“Indiana was the first place I was able to get grounded and rooted at all,” Midwxst says. “Just to get an
understanding of my surroundings and actually tap in with some of the culture here.”

“Back in Action,” an EP Midwxst made for Geffen Records (where his label mates include Olivia Rodrigo
and Rod Wave), arrived on Sept. 22. He’s already come a long way from his early musical efforts.

“I never expected to be able to sign to a major record label from making literal diss tracks and jab songs
at all my friends during freshman year of high school,” Midwxst says.

Those lyrics may have been good-natured, but distrust and isolation provided a theme for the first EP
Midwxst released this year: an independent project titled “SUMMER03.” “Got no one to text or call up my
phone,” he rapped/sang on the unplugged ballad “Liar.” “I hide how I feel, never let a bit show. I don’t
want help; I can suffer alone.”

The lyrics heard on the “Back in Action” project for Geffen aren’t as bleak. He takes time, however, to
state, “I keep my circle tight because I don’t know who to trust.”

Midwxst says interactions at Park Tudor influenced his outlook on friendship and loyalty.

“The kids in my high school? They’re gossipy,” he says. “Everybody talks about one person, and that one
person talks about them. This other person is talking about someone else. It’s a spider web of, ‘This
person did this, this and this.’ I still have friends and I still obviously have conversations with other
people. But I distanced myself from the childish manner of that.”

Considered a leader within the over-the-top “hyperpop” genre, Midwxst specializes in high-energy
rhymes accompanied by electronic beats. Music blog Underground Underdogs hailed Midwxst as “the
new American teen,” and Pitchfork complimented “Back in Action” with a score of 7.2 on its 10-point review scale.

Presently studying Audio Engineering Technology at Belmont University in Nashville, Midwxst says he
appreciates guidance from his mother, Karin Sarratt, as his popularity grows.

“My mom is basically my second manager,” he says. “She’s on the week-to-week meetings with the
label. She always looks out for my best interests. I really value her and her input.”

Four songs on the “Back in Action” EP mention advice Midwxst received from Karin.

“When I put her advice in a song, I want other people to take that advice, too,” he says. “Why not give
that advice to other people who might listen to my songs for inspiration?”

On recent single “Tic Tac Toe,” Midwxst revisits his not-so-distant youth thanks to references to video
game character Crash Bandicoot, Pokemon’s Pikachu and “Phineas and Ferb” favorite Perry the
Platypus.

“That’s just nostalgia for me,” he says. “It’s super cool to put my own twist on that.”

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