Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Adam Yokum, a music industry student at West Virginia University, is set to release a new hip-hop and rap album titled “The Love Story,” which showcases the ebb and flow of a young couple’s relationship.

"I just got out of a relationship maybe five months ago,” Yokum said. “So, some of the things from the album are pulled from things I went through, personal experiences and just things I’ve learned over time.”

“The Love Story” will be Yokum’s second released album, featuring eight different songs. Since 2018, he has released one album and 46 singles.

The pandemic presented a lot of challenges for live performers due to the prolonged closure of local venues, but it gave Yokum more opportunities to focus on starting his new business, First Man Records.

“All this time being inside and kind of not going out has given me more time to focus on actually sitting down, making music, getting albums done and kind of working on myself as an artist,” Yokum said.

Yokum is currently discussing business plans with his manager, Alex Schneider. The business is temporarily serving as a way for him to balance expenses, but it will eventually provide resources to other musicians and producers, according to Yokum.

After college, Yokum and business partners plan to move to Los Angeles, where they hope to further expand the business.

“I feel like I relate to a lot of the creators that I know,” Yokum said. “Whenever I get in a studio with someone, there’s a lot of people I click with.”

“The Love Story” will be available on Spotify and Apple Music on Feb. 14.

“The people that listen to my music, I hope that they can get a message from it,” Yokum said. “I hope that they can find something that helps them, whether I’m helping a million people or three people.” - Trenton Straight

During my freshman year, i remember going to my friends dorm in Boreman and meeting his next door neighbor. I learned that he made music published on Spotify. I quickly became a fan; I listened to his music and even went to see him perform in a nightclub. I was amazed. I feel like everyone knows someone who tries to be a rapper and puts themselves on SoundCloud thinking that'll do all the work for them. ive never met someone who actually wanted to put in the work until I met Adam Yokum. - Catherine Wylie

“It’s going to be big moment for me to perform for the first time back in my hometown” Yokum told The Inter-Mountain. “People have always known that I make music, but over the past couple years it has gotten to a much more serious level. I have really started applying myself and it is a big deal for me to be playing a show back in Elkins.” - The Inter-Mountain