POSA

Posa, the Mobile, Alabama rapper born Karvin Jones, crafts a relaxed yet forceful style marked by prominent Auto-Tune use and a low-slung groove. He spent his early years in a housing project where crime and substance issues claimed many peers; his two older brothers sparked his interest in rap, which grew into a deep fandom. A basketball-related injury ended his athletic ambitions during his teenage years in the early 2010s, prompting him to begin creating his own tracks. That period also saw the launch of his Bars & Liquor mixtape series in 2011. Street-level distribution of CDs brought him initial notice, leading to performance bookings and status as a sought-after local act. Online recognition followed in 2013 via a remix of Future’s “Honest.” The birth of his second child, who arrived with a heart ailment, triggered ongoing medical demands that ultimately fractured his family. He channeled the resulting pain into his work and relocated to Atlanta in 2016 seeking broader opportunities. There he encountered T.I.’s DJ MLK, who forwarded a demo to Girvin “Fly” Henry, the head of the Warner-distributed Think It’s a Game Records. Fly signed Posa, and the label issued the singles “In a Minute,” featuring Q Money, and “Big Dawg,” featuring Moneybagg Yo, plus the 2019 EP Bolo, which contained the widely viewed video track “Dropping Jewels.” Early in 2020 came his first full-length project, the collaborative album 2 Sides of da Bottom with Rubberband OG.