ASAP Rocky

ASAP Rocky
Birth name Rakim Mayers
Born October 3, 1987 (1987-10-03) (age 24)
Harlem, New York, U.S.
Genres Hip hop
Occupations Rapper, director
Instruments Vocals
Years active 2011–present
Labels Sony/RCA/Polo Grounds

Rakim Mayers (born October 3, 1987), better known by his stage name ASAP Rocky (often stylized A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper and director. Born and raised in Harlem, he released the mixtape LiveLoveA$AP in 2011. On December 5, 2011, the BBC announced that he had been nominated for the BBC's Sound of 2012 poll.[1]

Contents

Biography

Early life and career beginnings

Rakim Mayers was born on October 3rd, 1987, named after an American rapper Rakim, one half of the Eric B. & Rakim duo.[2][3] When he was 12 years old, his father went to jail in connection with selling drugs.[2] A year later an older brother was killed near his apartment, which inspired him to take rapping seriously.[4] Mayers had started rapping at age 8,[5] grew up admiring Harlem-based rap group The Diplomats, and also lists among his influences Three 6 Mafia, Mobb Deep, Wu-Tang Clan, Mike Jones, Andre 3000, Drake, Kanye West, Wiz Khalifa, UGK, Lil B, YungHusky, Devin the Dude, andBone Thugs-n-Harmony.[2][6][7] After living in a shelter with his mother, and elsewhere around Manhattan, Mayers moved to Elmwood Park, New Jersey.[2][7]

LiveLoveA$AP (2011-present)

The "Peso" single was leaked onto the internet in August 2011 and within weeks received airplay on the high-profile Hot 97 New York radio station.[2][3] Music videos for "Peso" and "Purple Swag" generated further buzz and resulted in ASAP Rocky signing a reported $3 million record deal with Sony/RCA.[2][3][8][9][10] ASAP Rocky released the mixtape LiveLoveA$AP in October to generally positive reviews from critics.[9][10][11][12][13]

Discography

Mixtapes

List of mixtapes, with selected details
Title Details
LiveLoveA$AP

Featured singles

List of singles featuring A$AP Rocky, year released and album name
Title Year Album
"4 Loko"[14]
(Smoke DZA featuring A$AP Rocky)		 2011 Rolling Stoned
"Grippin Woodgrain"
(Seth Narley featuring A$AP Rocky)		 non-album single

Promotional singles

List of promotional releases, year released and album name
Title Year Album
"Peso"[15] 2011 LiveLoveA$AP
"Purple Swag"[16] non-album single

Guest appearances

List of songs with guest appearances by A$AP Rocky
Title Year Album Artist
"Take 1" 2011 808s & Dark Grapes II Main Attrakionz
"Make It Stack" Cold Corner 2 Lloyd Banks
"Real Hustlers Don't Sleep" Blue Dream & Lean Juicy J
"Yao Ming" MTA3: The Trinity Movement David Banner, 2 Chainz
"4 Loko" (Remix) Sweet Baby Kushed God Smoke DZA, A$AP Twelvy, Danny Brown, Killa Kyleon, Freeway

Music videos

Song Year Director References
"Get High" 2010 King Zulu [17]
"Purple Swag" 2011 Jason Ano + Rakim Mayers [18]
"Peso" Abteen Bagheri + Rakim Mayers [19]
"4 Loko" (with Smoke DZA) Cristopher Schafer + Kory Smith [20]
"Wassup" 2012 Rakim Mayers [21]

Videography

2011

External links

References

  1. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/soundof/2012/artists/asaprocky/
  2. ^ a b c d e f Caramanica, Jon (2011-10-12). "Thinking Globally, Rapping Locally". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/13/arts/music/asap-rocky-new-york-rapper-with-a-hint-of-elsewhere.html?pagewanted=all. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  3. ^ a b c Pérez, Ysa (2011-10-28). dollar-thousand dollar-record-deal-mainstream-acceptance/ "A$AP Rocky Talks $3 Million Record Deal, Mainstream Acceptance". Pitchfork. http://pitchfork.com/news/44436-aap-rocky-talks-40 dollar-thousand dollar-record-deal-mainstream-acceptance/. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  4. ^ Zeichner, Naomi (2011-10-14). "Gen F: ASAP Rocky". The Fader. http://www.thefader.com/2011/10/14/gen-f-asap-rocky/. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  5. ^ Markman, Rob (2011-10-20). "Drake Has 'Good Taste,' A$AP Rocky Says After Co-Sign". MTV. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1672877/drake-has-good-taste-aap-rocky-after-cosign.jhtml. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  6. ^ Murphy, K. (2011-11-02). "A$AP Rocky Talks Debut Album, Musical Influences, and Accepting Gay Fans". Vibe. http://www.vibe.com/posts/aap-rocky-talks-debut-album-musical-influences-and-accepting-gay-fans. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  7. ^ a b Lymangrover, Jason. "ASAP Rocky - Biography". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/asap-rocky-p2483188. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  8. ^ "Mixtape Daily: L.E.P., ASAP Rocky, Freddie Gibbs, Fat Joe, More Other Notables". MTV. 2011-11-01. http://rapfix.mtv.com/2011/11/01/mixtape-daily-lep-bogus-asap-rocky-freddie-gibbs-fat-joe-young-chris/#more-24690. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  9. ^ a b Bozzer, Mark (2011-11-08). "Reviews: A$AP Rocky - LiveLoveA$AP". Exclaim!. http://exclaim.ca/Reviews/HipHop/asap_rocky-liveloveaap. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  10. ^ a b Weiss, Jeff (2011-11-10). "Album Reviews: A$AP Rocky - LiveLoveA$AP". Pitchfork. http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16026-liveloveaap/?utm_campaign=album_reviews&utm_medium=site&utm_source=related. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  11. ^ Barshad, Amos (2011-11-06). "Veggie-Friendly Weirdo Rap". New York. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1673926/asap-rocky-live-love-mixtape.jhtml. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  12. ^ Madden, Mike (2011-11-07). "Album Review: ASAP Rocky – LiveLoveA$AP". Consequence of Sound. http://consequenceofsound.net/2011/11/album-review-asap-rocky-liveloveaap/. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  13. ^ Markman, Rob (2011-11-07). "A$AP Rocky Having A 'Good Time' On Debut Mixtape". MTV. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1673926/asap-rocky-live-love-mixtape.jhtml. Retrieved 2011-11-15. 
  14. ^ Smoke DZA featuring A$AP Rocky > "4 Loko" - Single iTunes, Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  15. ^ A$AP Rocky > "Peso" - Single iTunes, Retrieved 2011-12-06.
  16. ^ A$AP Rocky > "Purple Swag" - Single iTunes, Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  17. ^ ASAP Rocky > "Get High" Youtube, Retrieved 2011-12-18.
  18. ^ ASAP Rocky > "Purple Swag" > Directed by Jason Ano + ASAP Rocky Youtube, Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  19. ^ ASAP Rocky > "Peso" > Directed by Abteen Bagheri + ASAP Rocky Youtube, Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  20. ^ Smoke DZA featuring A$AP Rocky > "4 Loko" > Directed by Cristopher Schafer + Kory Smith Youtube, Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  21. ^ AllHipHop.com Interview Youtube, Retrieved 2011-12-28.