DaBaby

North Carolina native DaBaby threw himself completely into rap without any prior background, transforming almost overnight from a creator of underground mixtapes into a multi-platinum international star. He entered the scene in 2015 under the moniker Baby Jesus before switching to DaBaby, flooding the market with mixtapes that included the 2016 track “Light Show” and live sets at South by Southwest both that year and again in 2017. Over time his delivery grew sharper and more forceful, evolving from melodic and playful phrasing into assured, smooth cadences showcased on the 2018 project Blank Blank. Capitalizing on early momentum, he reached the top of the Billboard 200 with the 2019 album KIRK and the 2020 release Blame It on Baby, whose lead single “Rockstar” featuring Roddy Ricch hit number one. In addition to numerous guest appearances, he issued the 2022 collaborative mixtape Better Than You with YoungBoy Never Broke Again and the full-length sequel Baby on Baby 2; he later returned to the Top 40 with the 2023 EP Call Da Fireman and unveiled How TF Is This a Mixtape? in 2024.

Born Jonathan Kirk in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1991, he moved at age six to Charlotte, North Carolina, where he navigated street life through his teenage years. In December 2014 he abruptly chose to pursue rapping, adopting the name Baby Jesus and dropping the NonFiction mixtape the following month. With no stage experience, he performed at South by Southwest in spring 2015, quickly building recognition through raw live shows. He later rebranded as DaBaby, citing “political reasons” in the lyrics of “DaBaby (Intro),” the opening cut of his first project under the new name, 2016’s God’s Work Resurrected, which included a guest spot from Boosie Badazz. A rapid succession of further mixtapes followed, among them the 2017 releases Billion Dollar Baby, Baby Talk, Baby Talk 2, Baby Talk 3, Baby Talk 4, and Back on My Baby Jesus Sh!t, as well as 2018’s Baby Talk 5 and Blank Blank.

Regional recognition and nonstop output secured a deal with Interscope in 2019. The label issued Baby on Baby that March, a precisely crafted album that reached the Billboard 200 top ten and was promoted by striking videos for the singles “Suge” and “Walker, Texas Ranger.” After several guest features, DaBaby dropped the introspective single “Intro” in September, addressing his father’s death; the track led his second album, KIRK, which arrived later that month, debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, and featured contributions from Nicki Minaj, Chance the Rapper, and Migos. He earned Grammy nominations for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance for “Suge.”

He delivered his third studio album, Blame It on Baby, in April 2020, enlisting Future, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Ashanti, Megan Thee Stallion, and others, and including the Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping “Rockstar” with Roddy Ricch. That November he released the EP My Brother’s Keeper (Long Live G) shortly after his older brother Glen died by suicide, with most tracks confronting the resulting grief. The standalone single “Masterpiece” appeared in January 2021. During a July performance at Rolling Loud Festival he made homophobic comments that drew widespread criticism and led to his removal from several festival bills; an apology posted on social media was soon deleted, intensifying the controversy.

November 2021 brought the surprise EP Back on My Baby Jesus Sh!t Again alongside the announcement of the Live Show Killa tour; the six-track project served as an informal follow-up to the 2017 mixtape Back on My Baby Jesus Sh!t and featured Kodak Black and 21 Savage. In March 2022 he and Louisiana rapper YoungBoy Never Broke Again issued the collaborative mixtape Better Than You, which reached the Billboard top ten and spawned the hits “Neighborhood Superstar” and “Bestie.” Baby on Baby 2 arrived in September together with the standalone singles “Waitress” and “Tough Skin,” debuting at number 34 on the Billboard 200. Two EPs followed in 2023—Call Da Fireman, containing the charting single “Shake Sumn,” and Let’s Do It, which included “No Finsta.” In February 2024 he appeared on That Mexican OT’s “Texas Technician,” and How TF Is This a Mixtape? was released in September.