A$AP Rocky

Inspired to take up rapping as a 13-year-old after the death of his brother and imprisonment of his father, Harlem-born Rakim Athelaston Mayers (October 3, 1988) found himself homeless and selling drugs by the age of 15. Joining the A$AP Mob hip-hop collective in 2007, he adopted the A$AP Rocky moniker (standing for Always Strive and Prosper) and started making waves when his mix-tape Deep Purple (2011) was picked up by New York radio station Hot 97. His track “Purple Swag” quickly became a hit on video-streaming platforms and earned the 22-year-old a $3 million deal with RCA, before second mixtape Live.Love.A$AP (2011) was praised for its high energy, aggressive rhymes, and honest tales about his upbringing. He went on to perform with Rihanna at the MTV Music Awards and recruited Santigold, Drake, and Skrillex to appear on his debut album Long.Live.A$AP (2013), which shot to Number 1 in the US charts and confirmed his status as one of the hottest young rap stars in the world. Two years later, A$AP Rocky fulfilled the promise of his studio debut with the star-studded full-length At. Long. Last. ASAP (2015), snatching the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and Top Rap Albums charts. His sophomore effort featured production by Danger Mouse and cameos by Kanye West, Lil Wayne, and Future, among others. Subsequently, he released a third album titled Testing (2018) to great critical and commercial acclaim and celebrated the tenth anniversary of his mixtape Live.Love.A$AP in 2021 by making it available on all streaming platforms.