Young Dolph

South Memphis rapper Young Dolph earned local-hero status through hard-edged club anthems and icy one-liners spread across a run of mixtapes that secured national attention near 2014. Four albums later placed him on the Billboard 200, from King of Memphis (2016) through Role Model (2018), before he reached a new tier with the Key Glock joint Dum and Dummer (2019), his first Top Ten entry; the streak continued via the equally strong Rich Slave (2020) and Dum and Dummer 2 (2021). Along the way he collected gold plaques for tracks such as “100 Shots,” “Major,” and “RNB,” while also appearing on O.T. Genasis’ multi-platinum single “Cut It.” Dolph was killed by gunfire in 2021; the posthumous set Paper Route Frank arrived the following year.

Born Adolph Thornton, Jr., in Chicago, Dolph grew up in Memphis and entered the scene in 2008 with the mixtape Paper Route Campaign. Further projects including The Weed Album and South Memphis Kingpin carried him to 2012, when he launched the High Class Street Music series of mixtapes. By the arrival of High Class Street Music 4 and the single “Preach” in 2014, he had begun working with major-label producers such as Drumma Boy and Zaytoven; both contributed beats to his 2016 debut album King of Memphis, which contained no guest features. Bolstered partly by his rising profile from the earlier O.T. Genasis collaboration “Cut It,” the project opened at number 49 on the Billboard 200.

Three mixtapes arrived in quick succession afterward; the final one, Rich Crack Baby, charted on the Billboard 200 and included guest spots from Boosie Badazz, 2 Chainz, Wale, T.I., Gucci Mane, and 21 Savage. Gelato, another mixtape, surfaced in early 2017 and featured the Yo Gotti diss “Play wit Yo’ Bitch” plus appearances by Migos, Wiz Khalifa, and Lil Yachty. Dolph’s second studio album, Bulletproof, came out in April 2017 and peaked at number 36. Months later he released Thinking Out Loud, which carried guest verses from DRAM, Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz, and Ty Dolla $ign and climbed to number 16 on the Billboard 200.

Early in 2018 he dropped the EP Niggas Get Shot Everyday, then issued the Key Glock collaboration “Major” and the solo cut “By Mistake” later that year. The full-length Role Model followed and became his highest-charting release to that point, reaching number 15. In 2019 Dolph teamed again with frequent partner Key Glock for their first joint mixtape, the number-eight entry Dum and Dummer. His seventh studio album, Rich Slave, arrived in August 2020 at number four and addressed systemic racism and inequality in America, with guest turns from Megan Thee Stallion, Key Glock, and G Herbo. In 2021 the duo reunited for the number-eight Dum and Dummer 2, after which Dolph released PAPER ROUTE iLLUMINATi, a showcase for his Paper Route Empire imprint. Young Dolph was fatally shot on November 17, 2021, at a Memphis bakery while en route to a Thanksgiving turkey giveaway; he was 36. In December 2022, previously unheard recordings were assembled into the album Paper Route Frank, which featured Key Glock, Gucci Mane, Big Moochie Grape, and others and reached as high as number 25 on the Billboard charts.