Early life:Leonard D. Harris found poetry and hip-hop at an early age and used both to cope with the passing of his parents. “As long as you’re talking about the negativity, you’re only attracting more negativity into your life. Stay positive. I was dead broke. I was living in my sister’s basement. All I had was a VS-880 (8-track recorder) but I did 2-3 songs a day.”At the beginning of his rap career, Harris adopted the name G.L.C., or 'Gangsta L. Crisis'. In 2004 he signed to Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music label, and was featured on "Spaceship" from West's album The College Dropout, and "Drive Slow" on Late Registration. He was one-third of the Chicago rap group The Go Getters with West and label-mate Really Doe. The group released one album together called World Record Holders.