Gabriel Alberto Azucena who goes by the stage name GAWVI, formerly G-Styles, is an American Christian hip hop artist and

music producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

, formerly for

Reach Records Reach Records is an American independent record label specializing in Christian hip hop. The label was founded in 2004 by Ben Washer and the hip-hop artist Lecrae. In addition to Lecrae, the Reach Records roster contains artists like Tedashii ...

. He was born on September 23, 1988 in the Bronx, New York. He has released three extended plays, five albums, and twenty-three singles including his songs; "In the Water" and "Late Nights." His career commenced in 2008, doing production work for

Lecrae Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the in ...

and

Trip Lee William Lee Barefield III (born December 17, 1987), better known by his stage name Trip Lee, is an American Christian rapper and singer. Signed to Reach Records, he has recorded both as a solo artist and as a founding member of the 116 Clique. ...

, who continue to be his most consistent collaborators. In early 2016, he was officially signed to

. In early 2022,

ended their professional relationship with Gawvi due to allegations of him sending multiple women unsolicited sexually explicit photos of himself.

Personal life

Gawvi was born Gabriel Alberto Azucena, in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Yo ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * ...

, to a father from

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by ...

and a mother from the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...

. He was raised in

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at th ...

. He was married to Brianna Azucena. In January 2022 Gawvi announced that he had separated with her in 2020. Shortly after this announcement, the visual and musical artist Cataphant claimed on Twitter that he had allegedly sent unsolicited pictures of his genitalia to multiple women. Reach Records subsequently ended their professional relationship with him.

Music career

Career beginnings, record producing, and Reach Records (2008–2015)

He started his

music production A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

career in 2008, most notably working with

and

. His career led to him acquiring a recording contract with

as both an artist and in-house record producer. He won a

GMA Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...

at the 46th GMA Dove Awards in the category of Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year, for his production work on ''Anomaly'' by

''Lost in Hue'', ''Holding Hue'', ''We Belong'', and ''954'' (2016–2017)

On July 29, 2016, Gawvi released his debut extended play ''Lost in Hue''. Jesus Freak Hideout rated the E.P. (extended play) three out of five stars, claiming it to be a unique move made by Reach. ''Lost in Hue'' flew off the shelves, sitting at No. 1 on the iTunes top-selling dance albums chart. On September 9, 2016, Gawvi released his second extend play, ''Holding Hue'', and was given a five-star rating by JFH's Liam Jackson, who said that "Free" featuring T-Jay was the only song that was "not that good.” On March 31, 2017, he released his debut studio album ''We Belong'', to acclaim in the CCM (contemporary Christian music) community and debuting at No. 19 in iTunes. Gawvi received his second

Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Award ...

in 2017 for his production on

's album ''The Waiting Room.''

''Panorama'', ''Heathen'', and ''Noche Juvenil'' (2018–present)

Gawvi released his second album ''Panorama'' on October 17, 2018, featuring the song "Fight for Me" (with

), which won Rap/Hip Hop song of the year at the 50th GMA Dove Awards. On April 10, 2020, Gawvi released his third album, ''Heathen'', which was nominated for Rap/Hip Hop album of the year at the

51st GMA Dove Awards The 51st Annual GMA Dove Awards presentation ceremony was recorded on Tuesday, September 1, 2020 through October 5, 2020, at the TBN in Hendersonville, Tennessee. The awards are given by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) recognizing the accompl ...

. On March 26, 2021, Gawvi released his fourth full album, ''Noche Juvenil'', which featured all songs recorded in Spanish, featuring Spanish-speaking artists from the Christian hip hop scene. On January 30, 2022, Reach Records ended their professional relationship with Gawvi due to sexual misconduct allegations.

Discography

Albums

Extended plays

Singles

As a lead artist

As a featured artist

Other appearances

Awards

GMA Dove Awards

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2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

, , "Fight For Me , , Rap/Hip Hop Recorded of the Year , , , - , ''PANORAMA'' , , Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year , ,

References

External links

*
AllMusic credits
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gawvi 1988 births Living people American performers of Christian hip hop music Musicians from New York City Musicians from Miami Musicians from Atlanta Performers of Christian electronic dance music Rappers from the Bronx Rappers from Miami Rappers from Atlanta Songwriters from New York (state) Songwriters from Florida Songwriters from Georgia (U.S. state) 21st-century American rappers Reach Records artists Hispanic and Latino American musicians Trap musicians American electronic dance music musicians