At 5 years old, Peyton would build stages and perform mini-concerts for his neighborhood. He would breakdance and sing Justin Bieber lyrics into a microphone. 

When Peyton was 7, he received his first DJ board, a Pioneer DDJ-400, on Christmas. At the time, Peyton wasn’t familiar with recording equipment but taught himself mixing basics and the board’s mechanics from YouTube videos. 

“I always knew I wanted to do something with people — something creative [that I] can express myself in,” Peyton said. “[When] I first started [DJing,] it wasn’t something I looked at as, ‘Oh, it’s going to be big.’”

In middle school, Peyton began selling sneakers and clothing from his closet to his friends. During Peyton’s junior year, he joined his friends, now-seniors Ishan Abraham and Elijah Revira-Campos, in selling clothes under the name Backstreet. 

The three of them continued selling and trading their own clothes. Once they gathered enough revenue, they started thrifting for clothes in bulk. They looked for vintage clothes with quality materials going for high resell prices, and buy clothes based on the season. They started to sell the clothes at pop-up events and on the online fashion market Depop. 

“[Peyton] loves talking and connecting with people,” Revira-Campos said. “We’ve met so many creatives, not only through our business, but with his DJing.”

Peyton focused on growing Backstreet into something more independent at the beginning of this year. He changed the name to Fortune Refinds and co-runs the business with Rivera-Campos. They hold pop-up events where they resell clothes, hold live DJ sessions and create new connections.

“I like [pop-up events] because you get to meet a lot of people,” Peyton said. “[And because] no one really pays attention to the music [I play,] I get to play [a] chill, lower beat.” 

On Feb. 1, the duo sold clothes at the vintage clothing event Swap Con. The event is held all over the country and 200 vendors attended the Dallas location, making it their biggest and most successful event yet. However, Peyton and Revira-Campos are taking a short break to focus on their personal hobbies.

“He inspires me,” Revira-Campos said. “I used to not go out as much, but he inspired me by looking at the outside world from a different perspective. He is confident and enjoys life.” 

Although Peyton’s parents were skeptical about his DJ career at first, they have become his biggest supporters. 

”He 100% beats to his own drum,” Peyton’s dad, Charles Kelley, said. “He has his own path and we try to give him guidance and provide feedback, but he does his own thing.”

Peyton said working on multiple projects can get stressful, so when he isn’t busy at an event or at school, he journals to keep himself motivated and on top of things. 

“Journaling has helped me a lot,” Peyton said. “Especially in the scene I’m in [because] there’s a lot of distractions. It’s like a full-time job, [so it helps me] stay disciplined, motivated and balance everything.”

Peyton said he wants to grow his career to give back to others. When someone invites him to DJ at a house party, he refers them to a smaller DJ to help them build more experience. He plans on donating to charities, starting fundraisers and helping others as he grows and works on bigger projects.

“Everything I do is for the community,” Peyton said. “I want to start something here [that] I can take to other places. My door is always open — that’s pretty much my thing. My end goal is to help people. It’s small right now, but I know it’s going to escalate.”