If you’ve forgotten what high school was like then the music of ‘High School High Life’ is going to bring it all back for you.Jelani Simmons, 15 and Kyle ‘Yung Mack’ McNeil, 18, released the songs with help from producer Shane Woodley.Since the mixed tape was first available as a free internet download last month, it has been viewed over 4,000 times and downloaded more than 400 times.“Mack and I have been friends for at least two years now,” said Jelani. “We both like hip hop and performing music. I call him my big brother. He is always over the house chilling and writing music.”In High School High Life, the two explore some of the differences between going to a public school and a private school. Kyle attends Saltus Grammar School, and Jelani attends the Berkeley Institute. Said Jelani: “You would think public school would come out all hype, but I have more of a mellow flow and different types of beats. He has more of a punch line to his music.”Added Kyle: “The album isn’t meant to be a competition between public and private, it is just talking about the differences.”Kyle has been rapping and singing since he was about ten years old, when he was inspired by American rapper Bow Wow who made his first album ‘Beware of Dog’, at the age of 13.“Lil Bow Wow got me started,” he said. “He is a little bit older than me. Now I write my own music.“I write about life, and what goes on. I try not to rap about materialistic things. I have been rapping about a lot of girls, young love and things like that.”This summer he is working in the kitchens of Tucker’s Point Club and at Riddell’s Bay Golf & Country to learn more about the hospitality industry.“I have been cutting up food and preparing food,” he said. “I have learned that you have to be fast.”Jelani has been rapping for about three years. He got his start one summer while helping out at Steve Easton’s Just Platinum Studios.“[Youth Affairs] Minister Glenn Blakeney was visiting the studio and asked me about myself,” he said. “When I told him I was interested in rap, he challenged me to write a song for an upcoming Progressive Labour Party (PLP) rally.“That is how it started. I wrote the song overnight and it has been fireworks from there. It was a song dedicated to Bermuda, it mentioned all the parishes. I was about 12 when I did that.”He was very nervous at the rally but the crowd screamed for more afterward so he knew he “had to have done something right”.“I wasn’t expecting that at all,” Jelani said. “I am actually on three albums. One is a solo, mixed tape that I did by myself, ‘Life is a Gamble’.“I was featured on Shane Woodley’s album ‘Da Squad, Starting Eleven’, and this one, a collaboration between me and Mack.”After his performance at the PLP rally Jelani’s parents, Carmalita and Kenneth Simmons, bought him sound recording equipment. “I come from a musical family, I can recognise talent,” said Mrs Simmons. “My father is Morton Williams and his brother is Warren Williams of Harmony Four. They have recorded albums.“I sing with the Seventh-day Adventist Inspirational Choir. Jelani can write a song at the drop of a dime. You give him something and he runs with it.“To see the passion he has when he is writing is amazing. His lyrics are very poetic. They have a meaning. My husband and I are very proud of how he is doing. We recognise that he has a gift.”She said because Jelani has recording equipment he has been able to work on his craft in his downtime as well as help other young people improve their talents.“Our house has become a magnet for children in the neighbourhood,” said Mrs Simmons. “I haven’t taken any lessons, it has just been ‘see and do’,” said Jelani. “I just want to reach my goals. My goal right now is to get a record deal and get signed. I dream of doing tours and making money and making my parents proud. Shane Woodley has become a real mentor to me.”The pair gave their first performance promoting ‘High School High Life’ at an Island Soccer League (ISL) game last month. Unfortunately the audience wasn’t that into it, said Kyle.“They weren’t really making any noise or anything,” he said. “But it was a good experience. We still got our message across and we got some exposure.”Useful websites: http://bit.ly/lVwgQF, www.NearFutureRecords.com.