Moving to Brooklyn from Lagos, Nigera at 9 years old, Thutmose‘s story as a first generation immigrant is one that shares some commonalities while also being uniquely his own.

The artist just dropped his debut project, Man on Fire, and the album takes a look back at his life  and shows the odds and hurdles he’s overcome. Thutmose raps about fa gun being pointed to his mother’s womb before his birth, to the Lagos Armoury explosion that threatened their lives, to his first memory upon immigrating to New York as a child being a SWAT team raiding his family’s home and putting a gun to his father’s head – he spoke with Billboard this week about his transition from Lagos to the U.S.

Most notably on the closer “Pressure,” where he also addresses the challenges and uncomfortability that comes with the struggle to fit-in as a kid. Thutmose also embraces the thrills of New York on “Ride With Me” and ” WuWu,” and he teamed up with fellow Brooklyn rappers Desiigner and Jay Critch for darker tracks, “OkOk” and “Rounds,” that capture the essence of the city’s nightlife.

While making the project, Thutmose also spent time working in L.A. where he connected with Scott Storch, who produced “For the Night” – while the track’s official release comes today with the release of the project, it first appeared in Scott Storch’s recent VEVO documentary where they performed the track together.