Peezy emerged as a key figure among Detroit rappers through his unyielding verses and rugged delivery style. Early in the 2010s he gained traction within the Motor City’s Team Eastside collective before pursuing independent releases that included the 2015 project Mud Sweat & Tears. Subsequent mixtape momentum produced the 2021 effort Free Rio, the 2022 set Only Built 4 Diamond Links, and the 2023 album GHETTO.
Phillip Glen-Earl Peaks, raised on Detroit’s east side, first tried rapping while attending Cooley High School under the influence of Dipset, Jay-Z, DMX, and Fabolous. He left school during eleventh grade and, by 2010, was recording at the city’s Cloud 9 studio. Alongside Babyface Ray, D-Nice, and Lou he issued the track “Eastside Where the Real Money At,” which resonated locally; when the group followed with the 2011 album We in Here they were already recognized as Team Eastside. Three additional well-regarded projects followed before the members shifted focus to solo work.
As an individual artist Peezy attracted notice via 2014’s Mud Muzik, established his #Boyz Entertainment imprint, and reached a broader audience with the third album Mud Sweat & Tears in 2015. The next year brought racketeering and conspiracy charges, yet he still dropped the 2017 mixtape Ballin Ain’t a Crime. Three further 2017 releases arrived—People’s Champ, Winter Grind, and Ghetto Wave—followed by No Hooks in 2018 and both No Hooks 2 and Royalty One in 2019.
That run of output preceded an 18-month prison term spanning 2019 to 2021, during which Peezy continued supplying material recorded earlier. Collaboration with Payroll Giovanni of Doughboyz Cashout yielded Ghetto Rich Niggaz and Ballin Ain’t a Crime 2, both issued in 2020.
After his release Peezy opened 2021 with the single “Build a Bear” featuring Pooh Beatz and closed the year with Free Rio. The 2022 album Only Built 4 Diamond Links reached number 128 on the Billboard 200 and number 17 on the Top Independent Albums chart. GHETTO appeared in 2023, featuring Brielle Lesley and the single “Gotti and Bandz.”
