Emerging from Mobile, Alabama, rapper Rylo Rodriguez drew early notice through his distinctive approach to flipping samples, pulling from mellow R&B cuts, guitar loops, and even a Mariah Carey song to shape the backdrops of his initial releases. Ties to fellow rappers NoCap and Lil Baby helped broaden his reach, leading him to join Lil Baby’s Four Pockets Full imprint for the 2020 arrival of his first studio album, G.I.H.F. He sharpened both his writing and vocal delivery on the follow-up, 2023’s Been One. Further singles such as “85 Cutlass” surfaced in 2024.
Born Ryan Adams in 1993, Rodriguez was raised by his grandfather inside a Mobile housing project whose realities shaped his early songwriting, which focused on the daily struggles and street hustles around him. Beyond those raw personal narratives, his first tracks stood out for their inventive beat construction. The 2019 cut “Project Baby” repurposed the instrumental from Mariah Carey’s tender ballad “Always Be My Baby” to frame stories of neighborhood life, and its video surpassed ten million views within a year. Other early recordings drew samples from Tamia and Leon Bridges.
During 2019 he issued the collaborative mixtape Rogerville alongside fellow Alabama rapper NoCap and appeared on multiple tracks with Lil Baby, who was then enjoying widespread mainstream success. Those associations introduced Rodriguez to wider audiences, and in November 2020 he delivered his debut album G.I.H.F.—an abbreviation for “Goat in Human Form.” The project included guest spots from Lil Baby, Yo Gotti, Jackboy, and additional artists while reaching the upper half of the Billboard charts.
Over the subsequent years Rodriguez focused primarily on standalone singles, among them 2021’s “Pallbearers” and the 2022 Lil Darius collaboration “Regular.” In June 2023 he unveiled his second studio album, Been One, which reflected continued artistic growth and featured an array of high-profile rap guests including Lil Durk, Lil Yachty, Lil Baby, EST Gee, and others. Throughout 2024 Rodriguez joined tracks by YTB Fatt, Veeze, and NoCap before issuing the solo single “85 Cutlass.”
