YSN Flow – A Mic and a Dream
Written by Spencer Rioux
Who is YSN Flow?
Kamron Ford, better known by his stage name YSN Flow, is a 21-year-old rapper born and bred in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Over the span of his teen years, he built his Spotify catalog releasing 2 albums and over 30 singles solidifying the dedication of the young gun.
With 195,000 monthly listeners and his most streamed song Want Beef? holding an incredible 38 million listens, it’s impossible to disagree that everyone is eager to see what big things are on his way as he enters his 20s. Releasing 6 singles in 2024 closing out December with a YouTube exclusive Can’t Come Home which is already at 176,000 views, he is still surprising his fans six years into his rap career.
Why Should I Know YSN Flow?
Before YSN Flow would even turn 18 years old he would achieve what most hungry young artists could even dream of. Cosigns with big-name producers and artists reaching out and giving props, a label deal with Republic Records and a track that would surpass 30 million listens at 15 years old, performances with Lyrical Lemonade’s summer smash festival and Rolling Loud in 2021; sharing the same stage as Polo G, 50 Cent, and an early idol, NLE Choppa. His ability to dive as hard as he could into music and also recognize when building tracks what works and what doesn’t work at a young age is a talent many big artists struggle with today. YSN Flow has had his eye at the top of the mountain since he was 12 years old and he still hasn’t broken the stare.
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Coming up in Cleveland, YSN Flow had seen from a young age the struggle to climb in his city. This hit especially hard for up-and-coming artists as people would hate on each other even though they were from the same city. This taught him a lot about how negativity can affect an artist and continues to keep his circle free of negativity and only have people around who can help him in the big picture.
He’d been a fan of the new school greats in part by his brother showing him NBA Youngboy, NLE Choppa, and Juice WRLD at a young age. Rapping and performing had been a major interest in his pre-teen years. At 12 years old, YSN Flow would freestyle for fun during recess with his friends when they started to tell him he might have something. He saw how the people he listened to moved and this gave him a fire to become one of the greats alongside his idols.
When he was 14, he began to take music seriously, choosing the name K Flow as his rap name on his first few songs. He set up his own studio in his bedroom closet which included a snowball microphone which he began experimenting by wrapping a winter glove around it to create new types of sounds when rapping.
Switching his name to YSN Flow which stood for “Young Successful N—-s,” he would put out his first real single which created a major buzz in Cleveland called Flexed Up that featured two Cleveland artists Greggy Westside and Nappy Naps.
This was his first stepping stone on his rise, showing that his bars and singing rap style that he would flex from time to time could hold up with two other voices on the track. He followed up with No Cap in 2018 with sharp vocals and scary good flow rapping about making money, guns, and trap life while proudly stating being 14 years old.
In 2019, he would continue his grind and consistency putting out one song a month showcasing his singing abilities on Freezing and Runnin’ Up Dis Guap trying out different flows and beats. He wasn’t afraid to try new things on his tracks, testing the waters on melodic singing while staying true to his trap-influenced roots. YSN Flow would release a quick-bared, hard track called Go Dumb which if anything showed an iron confidence and ever-continuing improvement over the past year.
At this point, he was beginning to become a big deal around school and he wanted to capitalize on this by selling merch. Before he could sell his brand at school, he had to convince faculty that YSN stood for “Young Successful Navigator” to be deemed school-appropriate to sell to students.
With 5 songs under his belt and a growing name in his city, YSN Flow would drop the track that would propel him into the spotlight. At 15 years old he released Want Beef? featuring BaeBae Savo that would soon go on to solidify as a hood classic not just in the city of Cleveland but across the globe.
Want Beef? flowed perfectly rapping about an itchy waistline TEC and showing out on how he built this status himself and those who hated before shouldn’t expect anything in return now that he’s up. The track would go on to earn 1000 listens on the first day, 2000 on the second, and continue to climb past 10,000 in the first week. It didn’t take long for the track to surpass 11 million within the first month and for all eyes to turn to YSN Flow.
With this track, he was beginning to enter a new league with the numbers continuing to climb. He followed up with some notable tracks like Geeked Up, Illegal Guns, and Want Beef 2.0 where he continues to uphold his young cred talking about street life intertwined in smart wordplay and strong flows.
On November 29th, 2019, YSN Flow would drop his last single as an unsigned artist. He would then sign to Republic Records sometime between then and his Debut album on April 10th, 2020. His debut album, Flow $zn would mark the first official release for YSN Flow under Republic Records.
2020 would be a busy year for YSN Flow with a double album year with not only Flow $ZN in April but then another album titled Long Story Short in November. Both albums are easy to listen to with tracks that can pump you up for the day as well as something to put on when riding in the late night through the city.
Flow $ZN had secured a feature from Lil Tjay, and released another version of Want Beef, featuring Quando Rondo and YSN Jayo (an early friend and member of the early YSN moniker). Bringing these artists in on his first album coming off of a major song showed a lot of respect as he was able to share the album which he knew would become a success with other artists.
He was able to shine a light on his features letting them spit how they wanted, allowing them to express themselves while boosting the track with their own uniqueness. Notably, Lil Tjay, who was beginning to climb his own ladder at the time, began to blow up shortly after and there’s no doubt that Bad Vibes of Flow $ZN helped him on his journey.
On his first album, he showed he could hold a track and make solid collaborations, but for his second he took all the weight and went for the head. A perfect follow-up from his first album, Long Story Short displayed that he could carry an album all on his own.
By continuing the foundation of street insight, loyalty, and stacking his bank, he was showing hard work on the tracks and it was paying off. Working with LA’s legendary producer Iceburg who produced the entire album only elevated the track with him on the soundboard and YSN Flow on the mic. With a featureless album, YSN Flow kept his singing in the mix singing the hooks on Mud Brothers, Playing It Cool, and mixed singing with rapping on the flow for Roll Off which works incredibly well.
His track F**k You! is a call out to fake friends who are coming to him asking for handouts. He raps about shaking the ones who use him and for his newfound fortune and he’s letting them know that he’s keeping what he earned.
Flow and Republic records would go to drop their last single together titled Chrome Hearts in July 2021 which would follow by a sudden stunt in the amount of releases by him. There would then be silence until his next single Hotbox that he would release independently in May 2022. The only songs with YSN Flow’s name on them in between those two periods was one song he was featured on.
YSN Flow first spoke about his split with his record label on his single FTW(Fuck The World) released in November 2022 where he stated “I’m still screamin’ fuck the label that I left. The only reason I ain’t air ‘em out ‘cause I don’t really want the press. I’d be damned if I get put up on a shelf.” From the sounds of it, that period of time between Chrome Hearts and Hotbox, Republic was either shelving him or threatening to have him shelved and due to them not being in agreement, he was not able to release any music during that time.
Initially, it stung but YSN was able to appreciate the blessing in disguise, with no deadlines or involuntary influence of his music he was able to take time and make the music he wanted to make. YSN Flow began to slow down and start to live a more regular life, he still remained somewhat consistent in 2022 releasing 6 singles and doing the bulk of his marketing on his Instagram and TikTok to his extremely loyal fanbase he has built over the years, finishing off the year strong with Not A Love Song.
In 2023, YSN Flow took a step back from making music, releasing only four singles. Three of these tracks gained increasing traction, each garnering an impressive amount of views, helping to build anticipation and a fresh buzz around his name.
Despite scaling down his music output, 2023 was a monumental year for him in other aspects of life. He dedicated much of his time to investing in real estate, purchasing fixer-upper properties, restoring them, and either renting or selling them. Throughout this process, he kept his fans updated on his life and ventures via social media.
Beyond his real estate pursuits, YSN Flow focused on renovating his personal home, including rebuilding his own recording studio in the basement, a journey he documented extensively on TikTok. His passion for real estate is evident and not a recent development; in his 2024 single “Healing Scars,” he reflects on purchasing his mother a house for $250,000. Additionally, videos dating back to 2020 show him, at just 16 years old, buying and flipping properties.
Amid his real estate and music ventures, YSN Flow also welcomed his first daughter in August 2023, marking another significant milestone in his life. With family and financial growth as top priorities, it’s clear why he released only four songs in 2023, with the final single dropping in May. He focused on leveraging his music earnings to build lasting wealth and provide for his loved ones.
Throughout 2023 and 2024, YSN Flow continued performing, primarily in his hometown, where he has cultivated a dedicated fanbase. He frequently expresses his gratitude to his supporters, showing appreciation for those who have stood by him during this transformative period. Despite the changes in his journey, his connection with his fans remains unwavering, and his focus on both music and personal growth continues to drive him forward.
In 2024, YSN Flow made his return to music with the release of his long-awaited single “UFOs” in May, a track he had been teasing for some time. Though his release pace had slowed, it did not signal an end to his career. He released six tracks in 2024, with his latest, “Can’t Come Home,” dropping in December, proving his passion for music remains strong and he has no plans of stepping away anytime soon.
Blowing up at such a young age made things stressful and his main focus now is taking care of his family and making sure his inner circle is good. As lavish as it can be at times, it can rob anyone in that position of important years of figuring life out as a young teen and it’s understandable to need a break after grinding his entire teenage years.
He has been fighting personal battles as of late which will take time to fully overcome. He doesn’t dismiss the hard work he’s done and is thankful for how far he’s come but he has begun taking a break for himself and focusing on releasing singles instead of full-length albums.
However, don’t be fooled, YSN Flow has been talking about heating things up again and with a new year comes new releases from him. He seems to be in a better headspace and just recently sold out a venue in his home town in celebration for his 21st birthday where he had a full on concert with friends of his opening like YSN Marlo, 36 Jayve & Lil 50.
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YSN Flow is the definition that anything is possible. At 12 years old he was a kid making music in his bedroom closet and by 15 he was performing at big-name music festivals and had his songs reach worldwide status.
If anything, YSN Flow proved that anyone can make it no matter how young you are or how unreachable the goal may seem, there is always a chance to come up and reach the top.
To accomplish what he has accomplished before the age of 18 is an extraordinary feat that with hard work and dedication to the craft can be obtained by anyone with a mic and a dream. He is a trailblazer and a leader for young artists to look up to and be inspired by when thinking about stepping into the rap game.
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