Lil Baby

Dominique Armani Jones[3] (born December 3, 1994), known professionally as Lil Baby, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to mainstream fame in 2017 following the release of his mixtape Perfect Timing.[4] His debut studio album, Harder Than Ever (2018), spawned the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 single "Yes Indeed" (with Drake). In 2018, he released two more mixtapes: Drip Harder (with Gunna), which contained the single, "Drip Too Hard", that reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was later certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA); and Street Gossip, which reached #2 on the US Billboard 200.

Lil Baby
Lil Baby in 2020 in Icebox Jewelry Store
Background information
Birth nameJosiah Armani Jones
Born (1994-12-03) December 3, 1994
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Rapper[1]
  • singer
  • songwriter
Years active2015–present
Labels
Children2
Websiteiamlilbaby.com

His second studio album, My Turn (2020), reached #1 on the Billboard 200 and is certified triple-platinum by the RIAA. The album spawned the singles, "We Paid" (with 42 Dugg) and "The Bigger Picture", both of which reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.[5] In 2021, Lil Baby and rapper Lil Durk released the collaborative album The Voice of the Heroes, which became Lil Baby's second #1 Billboard 200 project. He also collaborated with Drake on the songs "Wants and Needs", and "Girls Want Girls", and with Nicki Minaj on the 2022 single "Do We Have a Problem?", all three of which peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. His feature on the song "Hurricane" by Kanye West, alongside The Weeknd, won him the Grammy Award for Best Melodic Rap Performance.

In addition to his Grammy Award, Lil Baby has received an MTV Video Music Award, and two BET Awards; and was crowned the biggest all-genre Artist of the Year at the Apple Music Awards 2020.

Early life

Jones was born in Atlanta, Georgia in the Oakland City neighborhood.[6] He was two years old when his father left the family, leaving his mother to raise him and his two sisters. He dropped out of Booker T. Washington High School in ninth grade and committed to drug dealing.[7]

In early 2012, he was charged for possession with intent to sell, among other charges; and in 2013 was charged with possession of marijuana of less than an ounce. He was arrested for the third time in as many years in 2014, on charges of possession of marijuana with intent to sell, and was incarcerated for two years.[4][8]

Career

2015–2018: Career beginnings and Harder Than Ever

At age seventeen, Lil Baby was a regular presence in the studio of Atlanta-based Quality Control Records as a drug dealer, until label founder Kevin "Coach K" Lee encouraged him to become a rapper, as he felt Baby had "the swag... the lingo, [and] respect around the city".[7] Fellow rappers Young Thug and Gunna served as Baby's mentors in developing his style.[9][10] He eventually released his first mixtape, Perfect Timing, in April 2017 with appearances from Young Thug and Lil Yachty. Another mixtape, Harder Than Hard, followed three months later; and in October released his third mixtape in six months, 2 The Hard Way, a collaboration with friend and fellow Atlanta rapper Marlo. A fourth mixtape, Too Hard, was released in December, led by his hit single "Freestyle" and accompanying music video. It was certified gold by the RIAA in February 2020.

With his career gaining momentum, Baby released his debut studio album, Harder Than Ever, in May 2018. It debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200.[11] The album was supported by the singles "Southside" and "Yes Indeed" (with Drake), the latter peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100. "Life Goes On" featuring Lil Uzi Vert and Gunna charted at 74 on the Billboard Hot 100.[12]

Lil Baby formed his own label, 4 Pockets Full (initialized 4PF) in 2017.[13][14] Rappers 42 Dugg and Rylo Rodriguez are signed to the label.

2018–2019: Drip Harder and Street Gossip
Lil Baby in 2018

After Lil Baby released Harder Than Ever, he released the collaborative mixtape Drip Harder with Gunna on October 5, 2018. The lead single, "Drip Too Hard" went on to become certified Diamond by the RIAA[15] and 4× Platinum by Music Canada.[16] The song peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for Best Rap/Sung Performance at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards. The mixtape was released under the labels Quality Control, YSL Records and Motown/Capitol.

In September 2018, Baby appeared on the Adult Swim television series FishCenter Live.[17] In November 2018, he released his mixtape Street Gossip.[18] In December 2018, Baby collaborated with Yung Gravy on the latter's single, "Alley Oop".[19]

He starred in the 2019 film How High 2 (a sequel to the 2001 stoner film How High), which premiered on April 20, 2019, on MTV.[20] On June 21, 2019, Baby and Future released a single titled "Out the Mud".[21] On July 17, 2019, Lil Baby appeared alongside DaBaby on the single "Baby", released on Quality Control's second studio album, Control the Streets, Volume 2. The song peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100.[22]

On November 8, 2019, Baby released his single "Woah" as the lead single for his second studio album My Turn.[23] The song peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100. Baby was featured on YouTuber KSI's track "Down Like That" with Rick Ross and British producer S-X, and performed it for KSI's 2018 boxing match against Logan Paul. On November 15, 2019, Baby released a song from the film Queen & Slim titled "Catch the Sun", which subsequently appeared on My Turn.

2020–present: My Turn and The Voice of the Heroes

On January 10, 2020, Lil Baby released the second single, "Sum 2 Prove", for his album, and it reached number 16 on the Hot 100. The album, My Turn, was released on February 28, 2020, and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200.[24] It features guest appearances from Gunna, 42 Dugg, Future, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Wayne, Moneybagg Yo, Young Thug and Rylo Rodriguez. My Turn produced 12 songs that appeared the Billboard Hot 100 chart, giving him a career total of 47 songs on the chart, tying him with Prince and Paul McCartney.[25] Following the release of the album's deluxe version on May 1, My Turn returned to the top spot on the Billboard 200. On June 12, 2020, Lil Baby released the political track "The Bigger Picture", amid the George Floyd protests. The song also debuted at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Lil Baby's highest-charting song as a lead artist.[26] His song "We Paid" featuring 42 Dugg from the My Turn deluxe also peaked in the top 10 of the Hot 100. In July 2020, Lil Baby was featured on Pop Smoke's "For the Night", from his posthumous debut album, Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon. The track reached number six on the Hot 100. In September 2020, My Turn became the first album of the year to be certified double platinum by the RIAA. "The Bigger Picture" received two nominations at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards: Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song.[27]

On March 14, 2021, Lil Baby performed "The Bigger Picture" at the Grammy Awards in 2021 to mostly positive reviews.[28][29][30][31] The following day, another collaboration with Drake, "Wants and Needs", debuted at number two on the Hot 100. Passing a previous peak and debut with "The Bigger Picture" for Jones, becoming his highest-charting song overall.[5]

On June 4, 2021, Lil Baby released his collaborative studio album with Lil Durk, The Voice of the Heroes.[32] The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200.

In September 2021, Lil Baby was featured on the song "Girls Want Girls" from Drake's sixth studio album, Certified Lover Boy. The song also debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, tying their previous collaboration "Wants and Needs" as Baby's highest-charting song overall.

On February 4, 2022, "Do We Have a Problem?" – a collaboration with Nicki Minaj– was released, along with a music video starring the two.[33] On March 2, 2022, Lil Baby was announced as one of the headliners for J. Cole's Dreamville 2022 Music Festival.[34]

Lil Baby is the subject of the documentary film Untrapped: The Story of Lil Baby, directed by Karam Gill, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2022.[35]

Personal life

Jones has a son from a relationship with former girlfriend Ayesha. He later dated model and entrepreneur Jayda Cheaves.[36][37] She appeared in the music video for his song "Close Friends".[38][39] On February 18, 2019, Cheaves gave birth to their son.

In May 2021, Jones visited the White House along with the family of George Floyd on the anniversary of Floyd's murder.[40][41]

On July 7, 2021, after attending Paris Fashion Week events with basketball player James Harden, Jones was arrested on a drug charge by police in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. Harden was stopped but not detained, and both men were soon released.[42][43][44][45]

Discography
Studio albums
  • Harder Than Ever (2018)
  • My Turn (2020)
  • It's Only Me (2022)
Collaborations
  • Drip Harder (with Gunna) (2018)
  • The Voice of the Heroes (with Lil Durk) (2021)

Filmography
  • Untrapped: The Story of Lil Baby (2022; as himself)

Awards and nominations
Award nominations for Lil Baby
Award Year[upper-alpha 1] Recipient(s) and nominee(s) Category Result Ref.
American Music Awards 2020 Himself New Artist of the Year Nominated [46]
"My Turn" Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album Nominated
2021 Himself Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist Nominated [47]
ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards 2021 Songwriter of the year Himself Won [48]
Winning Rap Songs Baby Won
The Bigger Picture Won
Emotionally Scarred Won
For The Night Won
Leave Em Alone Won
Sum 2 Prove Won
We Paid Won
WOAH Won
2022 Songwriter of the year Himself Won [49]
Winning Rap Songs Every Chance I Get Won
Girls Want Girls Won
On Me Won
Rags2Riches 2 Won
Wants And Needs Won
BET Awards 2019 Himself Best New Artist Won [50]
Himself & Gunna Best Group Nominated
2021 Himself Best Male Hip Hop Artist Won [51]
"For the Night" (Pop Smoke featuring Lil Baby and DaBaby) Best Collaboration Nominated
"The Bigger Picture" Coca-Cola Viewers' Choice Award Nominated
2022 Himself Best Male Hip Hop Artist Nominated [52]
Lil Baby & Lil Durk Best Group Nominated
"Every Chance I Get" (with Lil Durk & DJ Khaled) Best Collaboration Nominated
"We Win" (with Kirk Franklin) Dr. Bobby Jones Best Gospel/Inspirational Award Won
BET Hip Hop Awards 2019 "Drip Too Hard" (with Gunna) Best Collab, Duo or Group Nominated [53]
2020 "The Bigger Picture" Best Hip Hop Video Nominated [54]
Impact Track Won
Himself Hip-Hop Artist of the Year Nominated
"My Turn" Hip-Hop Album of the Year Nominated
2021 Himself Hip-Hop Artist of the Year Won [55]
"Every Chance I Get" (with Lil Durk) Best Collaboration Nominated
Lil Baby & Lil Durk Best Duo or Group Won
Himself Lyricist of the year Nominated
Himself Hustler of the year Nominated
"We Win" (with Kirk Franklin) Impact Track Nominated
2022 Girls Want Girls Sweet 16: Best Featured Verse Pending [56]
Billboard Music Awards 2019 Himself Top New Artist Nominated [57]
2021 Himself Top Male Artist Nominated [58]
Top Streaming Songs Artist Nominated
Top Rap Artist Nominated
Top Rap Male Artist Nominated
"My Turn" Top Billboard 200 Album Nominated
Top Rap Album Nominated
2022 Himself Top Rap Artist Nominated [59]
The Back Outside Tour Top Rap Tour Nominated
Grammy Awards 2020 "Drip Too Hard" (with Gunna) Best Rap/Sung Performance Nominated [60]
2021 "The Bigger Picture" Best Rap Performance Nominated [27]
Best Rap Song Nominated
2022 Back of My Mind (as featured artist and songwriter) Album of the Year Nominated [61]
Donda (as featured artist and songwriter) Nominated
"We Win" (with Kirk Franklin) Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song Nominated
"Hurricane" (with Kanye West and The Weeknd) Best Melodic Rap Performance Won
"Pride Is The Devil" (with J. Cole) Nominated
IHeartRadio Music Awards 2021 Himself Hip-Hop Artist of the Year Nominated [62]
"My Turn" Hip-Hop Album of the Year Won
MTV Video Music Awards 2020 "The Bigger Picture" Best Video with a Social Message Nominated [63]
"We Paid" (Feat 42 Dugg) Song of Summer Nominated
2021 "On Me" (Feat Megan Thee Stallion) Best Hip Hop Nominated [64]
2022 "Do We Have a Problem?" Best Hip Hop Won [65]
XXL Awards 2022 Himself Male Rapper Of The Year Nominated [66]
Lyricist Of The Year Nominated
Performer Of The Year Nominated
The People's Champ Nominated
"Every Chance I Get" (with Lil Durk) Song of the Year Won

Tours

Headlining
  • The Back Outside Tour (2021)

Co-headlining

Notes
  1. Indicates the year of ceremony. Each year is linked to the article about the awards held that year, wherever possible.

References
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