Born to teenage parents in a working-class area of Connecticut, rapper Apathy first discovered hip-hop at age five when his uncle played him Chaka Khan's 1984 cover of the Prince song "I Feel for You," which featured Melle Mel rapping. Instantly ho oked, Apathy began listening to rap incessantly, soaking up the sounds of Gang Starr, Jay-Z, Nas, and Organized Konfusion, among others, as well as writing his own rhymes.