Lowcountry rapper and songwriter Yung Dre Dre (born Antonio Simmons), 21, has been on the regional hip-hop scene since his teens.

Growing up in Beaufort and Walterboro, he performed around the state in recent years before recording a number of demos and landing a gig with Time 2 Shine Entertainment, an agency out of Jacksonville, Fla., run by Aqulis “Gambino Slim” Bell.

Time 2 Shine produced Yung Dre Dre’s newly-released, smooth-groovin’ single “Ringtone” earlier this year. The track landed him a new contract with Sony Records this summer. The rapper recently released his latest tune, a heavier, guitar-driven rocker titled “Pass Out,” online via his Myspace and Facebook pages. Keep your eyes and ears out for local performances and forthcoming releases.

Visit facebook.com/yungdredre1 for more.

“Ringtone”