Abe Sierra Jr. was born in 1988 and raised in the Puerto Rican neighborhood, Villa Victoria, located in Boston's South End. Abe is a first-generation DiaspoRican, his parents moved to the United States in the late-1960’s. Something that his parents brought with them to the United States was their pride for their culture, shaping Abe's outlook on his Puerto Rican heritage. At age 13, Abe’s parents bought him his first junior drum set, beginning his love for performing music. This led him to join his middle school’s band, performing in local community events and talent shows, and becoming the youth drummer for one of the local churches. Afterwards, Abe attended Boston Arts Academy, Boston’s first and only public high school for the arts.

 

     During his time at Boston Arts Academy, Abe discovered his passion for poetry, lyric writing, and music composition. Some wrong choices led to Abe's arrest on school grounds and his eventual expulsion from Boston Public Schools, which cut short his hopes of attending Berklee School of Music after high school. However, this experience did not stop Abe from continuing to pursue music. He began an independent record label in 2006, Profecia Records, with a group of friends, where they created Latin Hip-Hop and Reggaeton music. He collaborated on the record label until its closing in 2010. Afterwards, he continued to pursue his love for music by joining as a drummer for several Rock and Metal bands.

 

     In 2011, the death of his cousin at the hands of gang violence caused his hiatus from music and the arts in general. During this time, Abe became more connected to issues of social justice, addressing community violence, race, and class. This has led him in participating in activism, advocacy, and community building throughout Boston. These experiences inspired him to come back to the arts in 2016, creating outlets for social change through poetry and music.

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