Biography
Joey Purp emerged in the 2010s as one of the innovative Chicago rappers alongside SaveMoney associates Chance the Rapper and Vic Mensa. He first recorded as a teenager and soon gained traction through the well-received iiiDrops in 2016 and QUARTERTHING in 2018, both issued on his own while he maintained a steady flow of SaveMoney-linked projects, among them the Leather Corduroys recordings made with KAMI.
Born Joseph Davis, he spent his early years moving between several Chicago neighborhoods. His parents and siblings introduced him to an expansive spectrum of music that left a lasting impression. During high school he developed skill at freestyling, drawing motivation from the city’s creative climate and from peers such as Chance the Rapper, Vic Mensa, and Nico Segal, the three of whom established the SaveMoney collective together. In 2012 he issued his first project, The Purple Tape, at the age of eighteen. In the intervals between his own albums he dropped individual tracks and contributed to work by fellow SaveMoney members, including Mensa’s Innanetape, Thelonious Martin’s Wünderkid, and Segal’s Surf under the Donnie Trumpet & the Social Experiment banner. Alongside KAMI he also released material as Leather Corduroys.
Although The Purple Tape had already signaled strong promise, iiiDrops surpassed it upon arrival in 2016 by showcasing Purp’s versatile style, which earned inclusion on year-end lists from Complex, Esquire, Pitchfork, and Rolling Stone. He soon extended his reach with guest spots on releases outside his immediate circle, among them A-Trak’s remix of Phantogram’s “You Don’t Get Me High Anymore” and ZZ Ward’s “The Deep.” Additional standalone tracks and appearances, most prominently on touring partner Mensa’s Top 30 debut LP The Autobiography, filled the period leading to 2018, when Purp delivered QUARTERTHING, another independent full-length that featured RZA, GZA, and Ravyn Lenae.
Born Joseph Davis, he spent his early years moving between several Chicago neighborhoods. His parents and siblings introduced him to an expansive spectrum of music that left a lasting impression. During high school he developed skill at freestyling, drawing motivation from the city’s creative climate and from peers such as Chance the Rapper, Vic Mensa, and Nico Segal, the three of whom established the SaveMoney collective together. In 2012 he issued his first project, The Purple Tape, at the age of eighteen. In the intervals between his own albums he dropped individual tracks and contributed to work by fellow SaveMoney members, including Mensa’s Innanetape, Thelonious Martin’s Wünderkid, and Segal’s Surf under the Donnie Trumpet & the Social Experiment banner. Alongside KAMI he also released material as Leather Corduroys.
Although The Purple Tape had already signaled strong promise, iiiDrops surpassed it upon arrival in 2016 by showcasing Purp’s versatile style, which earned inclusion on year-end lists from Complex, Esquire, Pitchfork, and Rolling Stone. He soon extended his reach with guest spots on releases outside his immediate circle, among them A-Trak’s remix of Phantogram’s “You Don’t Get Me High Anymore” and ZZ Ward’s “The Deep.” Additional standalone tracks and appearances, most prominently on touring partner Mensa’s Top 30 debut LP The Autobiography, filled the period leading to 2018, when Purp delivered QUARTERTHING, another independent full-length that featured RZA, GZA, and Ravyn Lenae.
Albums
Singles
