EKT 40 is a hip-hop artist out of Columbus, Ohio, currently best known for his 2019 single, ‘Everything King Terk’, an emotional jam based on a tragic story that has been streamed more than 2 million times across Spotify and YouTube. After a string of self-released singles, he dropped his debut EP, While Yall Wait in 2022. He currently has over 133,000 Instagram followers and 30,000 YouTube subscribers.
EKT 40 was born Calvin Fluellen in June 1997. He began sharing his music and lyrics with the world as EKT 40 in 2019 through his YouTube channel. His debut drop, ‘Yeeaah’ performed well, as did its follow ups, but it was ‘Everything King Terk’ (his seventh single of the year) that caught on. The lyrics describe a 2014 incident where Fluellen, “16, playin’ wit beams”, accidentally shot his friend, 14-year-old Terrico Henry. Henry died from his injuries and Fluellen spent 18 months in juvenile prison. The naked regret of ‘Everything King Terk’s lyrics struck a chord with hip-hop fans, and the song soon passed the million-stream mark.
In the three years since, ETK 40 has kept up his frantic schedule, dropping single after single, constantly increasing his fanbase. He has also been signed to Meek Mill’s Dream Chasers record label.