After decades of struggling as a bluesman, Xavier Dphrepaulezz has finally got his shot as Fantastic Negrito.

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The muscian has been performing since the early 1990s, but recently the singer was catapulted to stardom after landing a slot in NPR's Tiny Desk Concert under the name Fantastic Negrito.

According to Music Mic on Thursday, it was the performer's "rawness" which gained NPR's attention.

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"The idea of 'raw' music, to me, is honesty: getting people to feel you with the least amount of production possible," explained Negrito.

Drawing his stage name from the music of his ancestors, Negrito believes in music presenting "the shortest distance traveled emotionally, sonically."

Despite some serious skills, Negrito almost didn't apply for the NPR competition. After years of disappointment in the industry, as well as a car accident which made it impossible to play for a time, Negrito had only just recently returned to playing on the streets of Oakland, Calif. He was exhausted and barely had the energy to film the NPR video.

Fortunately, he found it in himself to see it through and from there his career has just taken off. He scored a showcase at SXSW and is gaining recognition across the country.

While fame might be a way to get his music out there, Negrito isn't interested in becoming a "famous" person.

"I don't want to be famous," he insisted. "I don't want to be a star. I just wanna really enjoy music. That's why I started playing. I just wanna really enjoy it. Simple."

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