24min   |   English   |  Igal Hecht

Brett Devloo “The Blind Kid” basically went blind in the span of one week in November 2011. "I was sitting in history class and couldn't see the board. I asked my friend beside me if she could see it. She said she could, so I knew it was me." On his lunch break, he walked to the optometrist and got an immediate appointment. The results were not good. He failed every test. The doctor immediately got on the phone to tell his parents. He felt it was an urgent matter. It wasn't long before Brett's eyesight deteriorated from 20/50 vision to 20/500. Finally, in the spring of 2012, the doctors determined he had a very rare genetic disorder: Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy. It is an inherited disease caused by a mutation in one's DNA. 

Brett was determined not to let the blindness stop him from setting and achieving goals. "I do everything I possibly can to still be the same teenager I was before," he said. "Before I was just a regular teenager -- I had my own car, and I had a part-time job. I got fired from my job because I went blind." Brett was an avid skateboarder. His father told him he'd have to stop. Brett didn't accept that. He began skating and garnered a massive fan base online. A devout Christian who carries a bible with him everywhere he goes, Brett love for hip hop translated into a booming career in the Vancouver Hip Hop scene. With four singles under his belt, Greg blends his love for skateboarding, positive message, Christian values and singing into one