ASAP Rocky
Rakim Mayers was born in Harlem in 1988. Named after fellow New Yorker and legendary Eric B collaborator, young Mayers first remembers rapping at the tender age of eight. By 20 he'd taken in the influences of Bone Thugs-n Harmony, DMX, Wu-Tang Clan and Houston rap to form his own style apart from his New York contemporaries.
By then Rakim had joined the A$AP (Always Strive and Prosper) crew, taking on the name A$AP Rocky. Amongst this group of producers, designers and MCs he created debut released Pe$o and Purple Swag, capturing the attention of Fader Magazine, Stereogum, influential New York radio station Hot 97 and a host of leading rappers, most notably Drake, who invited Rocky on tour.
It wasn't long before RCA-distributed Polo Grounds had snapped the rapper up on a combined $3m deal for his solo work and A$AP Worldwide. This afforded the ambitious Mayers the opportunity to sign artists of his own. In October 2011 he released the much lauded mixtape LiveLoveA$AP, which Rocky claims is "better than a lot of people's albums", and we await a full longplayer in early 2012.
Last Played On the BBC
- Problem (feat. Drake, Kendrick Lamar & 2 Chainz)
- Trevor Nelson 10/12/2012
- Problem (feat. Drake, Kendrick Lamar & 2 Chainz)
- 1Xtra Breakfast Show with Twin B Twin B and friends: Tinie Tempah
- Problem (feat. Drake, Kendrick Lamar & 2 Chainz)
- Adele Roberts All Aboard The Old Skool Bus!
Artist Links
- BBC Music Page on ASAP Rocky
- Official homepage at liveloveasap.com
- Microblog at twitter.com/_ASAPROCKY
- Social network at facebook.com/asaprocky
- Last.fm at A$AP Rocky
- Musicbrainz at A$AP Rocky
Some of these links are to full webpages and will not have been formatted for optimum display on a mobile device.
