D Myles

Donovon Myles Hawkins was born in Detroit, MI and raised in what he calls a dual-invironment. His parents divorced when he was 2 years old, but still was raised by both of them, in different households. "It felt like I lived in two different cultures at the sometimes," D Myles recalls when his dad moved him, his two older brothers, and stepmother, from an inner city Detroit townhome, to a more wealthy Metro Detroit suburb. "It's like you have a different set of everything, from friends, to getting used to being looked at differently in school, then going right back to your original environment," as D Myles refers to his mother, still living in a more urban area. Going back and forth gave him a taste of everything, from some of his friends barely having enough money for shoes, to others that lived in mansions. By the time he had reached the age of 16, Donovon already felt like there was nothing left to be seen, confused by the many religious backgrounds and never really being a part of one, he turned to universalism. "There was definitely something missing. I loved sin (at that time) but there were other times where I asked myself, 'Why was I born? What happens when I die? What's the point of life?" D Myles reflects to the time before he knew Christ. He was producing hip-hop music for local artists since the age of 15 with his brother, one of the songs even making the local radio stations. "I fell in love with Hip-Hop when I first heard Ice Cube, so I really loved gangter rap first," says D Myles. Meeting with other, more seasoned engineers and producers, and being offered internships made him feel like a prodigy at such a young age. But along the journey of trying to be the next super-producer, D Myles had an encounter with Jesus. Since then, things have never been the same for D Myles. “When I first became a Christian, I didn’t even know there were artists that did hip-hop that were Christians, that just wasn’t what I was listening to.” With a deep love for music, Donovon attended Full Sail University for music production (which he received his bachelors degree in May 2013). Knowing that he still wanted to be a part of hip-hop as a Christian, he continued making music; but in a different context, and learning that there were others like him along the way. D Myles now resides in Metro-Detroit with his wife, and alongside his music, he is currently being mentored by his local church elders on preaching and teaching the word of God. D Myles’ desire is to not only encourage and edify people through music, but also to serve God through the calling of preaching his word, in any way possible. Follow D Myles on: Instagram: @dmylesmusic Twitter: @dmylesmusic