R.A. is a rapper's rapper. True skill and grit. The son of Staff Sgt. John A. Thorburn (who died last year) - he wrote a touching tribute to his father who was a Vietnam Veteran exposed to Agent Orange. R.A.'s family was significantly affected by the potent chemical. His brother Maxx was born handicapped and blind, eventually dying at the age of 10. R.A's sister, Dee Ann, was born without the ability to walk or speak. She died in 2007 at the age of 27. Real shit right here.