There are more than a dozen great Alabama rappers. The state has been home to a growing trend of hip-hop artists. Today, we will talk about all of them, from new artists to some of the greatest of all time. Alabama has solo rappers and hip-hop groups that have taken their popularity to national and even international levels.
The state includes cities like Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery, and more. Alabama rappers often live in the shadows of Atlanta. After all, Atlanta has a much more popular hip-hop scene. Even Gucci Mane, a famous rapper, was originally from Alabama before he migrated to East Atlanta.
The growing trend of rap music and the popularity of hip-hop music arrived in Alabama. The state is a classic example of southern rap music. Alabama has a large urban population, making it a good environment for rappers to grow and sell records.
With that in mind, let’s take a look, at the most famous Alabama rappers.
Gucci Mane
We start you off strong. Gucci Mane is one of the most famous names in the hip-hop scene in the past few years. Yes, he is now living in Atlanta. But he was born in Alabama. Gucci Mane, alongside other Atlanta rappers like Young Jeezy, popularized the trap music genre in the 2000s and 2010s.
Gucci Mane released his debut album Trap House in 2005, followed by his second album, Hard to Kill, a year later. Back to the Trap House, his third album came out in 2007. So, in a span of three years, Gucci released three highly successful albums in the trap rap genre.
So far, he has released 14 studio albums and more than 70 mixtapes. He founded his own label, 1070 Records in 2007. Over the years, he has worked with Lil Wayne, Drake, Chris Brown, Usher, Bruno Mars, Mariah Carey, Selena Gomez, and many more. Born as Radric Delantic Davis in 1980 in Bessemer, Alabama, he moved to Atlanta when he was only nine years with his single mother due to family problems. In September 2017, Davis published his autobiography, The Autobiography of Gucci Mane. He wrote it during his time in prison. In 2019, he started working with the Italian fashion house Gucci.
Jayson Mick Jenkins
Speaking of young and successful Alabama rappers, we have to mention Mick Jenkins. The American rapper is now based in Chicago, but he was born in Huntsville, Alabama. After his parents split up, he moved to Chicago with his mother and sister at the age of 9. He released his debut album, The Healing Component in 2016. Two years later, he released his second album, Pieces of a Man. He was influenced by both his mother and father in terms of music. For example, his mother listened to Neo-soul, while his father was more to contemporary black gospel music. Jayson Mick Jenkins started his career at age of 17. He began going to open-mic events at Young Chicago Authors. It was there he got interested in writing lyrics. He released his first mixtape in January 2012.
Rich Boy
The next guy on our list is Marece Benjamin Richards, born in February 1980. He is popular by his stage name, Rich Boy. The American rapper born in Mobile, Alabama, got famous in the early 2000s with his hit single, Throw Some D’s. The song served as the lead single for his eponymous debut album, released in 2007. In 2009, he released another popular single, Drop.
Fun fact: Rich boy studied mechanical engineering at Tuskegee University before dropping out to concentrate on his rap career.
YBN Nahmir
Born as Nicholas Alexander Simmons in December 1999, YBN Nahmir is among the young rappers from Alabama. He is famous for his singles Bounce Out That and Rubbin Off the Paint. The former peaked at Number 1 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. His Opp Stoppa single, featuring 21 Savage on the remix, peaked at Number 78 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. He was born in Birmingham and raised in a home with his mother, cousins, and aunt. Simmons started showing interest in music when he was 14 years old. He was gifted an Xbox 360 and began playing the video game Rock Band.
He actually recorded his first song through the Rock Band game. He then moved to play Grand Theft Auto and started recording gameplay videos. YBN Nahmir garnered a nice following on YouTube thanks to his videos. But because he was rapping freestyle at Xbox Live parties, he found success in music as well. He joined the YBN collective, which stands for Young Boss Niggas. When he was 15 years old, he uploaded his first song onto YouTube with fellow YBN Member, YBN Almighty Jay. While he is from Alabama, he lists rappers from the San Francisco Bay area as his influences.
Yelawolf
Born in Alabama and raised in Tennessee, Yelawolf embarked on a solo career journey in 2005. He was born in 1979 as Michael Wayne Atha. By 2010, he released four mixtapes. But it was his Trunk Muzik EP that gave the Alabama rapper some serious mainstream attention. Yelawolfthen signed a deal with Interscope Records. In 2011, he signed a recording deal with Shady Records, a record label by Eminem. In his songs, he usually raps about rural poverty with the precision of a master storyteller. Noted for his distinct style, it can range from American gothic to gore.
Fun fact: he started his career because his mother’s boyfriend was a sound designer for Aerosmith. At the time, Aerosmith was recording the Walk This Way remix with Run-DMC. The popular rappers were constant guests in his house, and they gave him cassette tapes to listen to. Nowadays, he lists Beastie Boys, Johnny Cash, Black Sabbath, Kraftwerk, The Doors, Metallica, and N.W.A. as his influences.
Doe B
Born Glenn Thomas in June 1991, he was another rapper who moved from Alabama to Atlanta. Famous for his eye patch because of a shooting in 2009, he was signed to the Atlanta-based record label, Hustle Gang. During his career, he released several mixtapes, including Trap Life in 2012 and Baby Jesus in 2013. Sadly, he was killed in December 2013 and his career ended prematurely. His debut album was expected to arrive in early 2014, but it was released posthumously.
Mr Envi
Born as Holland Dai’mon Witherspoon, Mr.Envi is an American rapper from Louisiana. So, what is he doing on the list of Alabama rappers? Well, he is originally from Alabama. He is the founder of the North Louisiana Football Alliance, a minor developmental football league. In 2001, he started releasing mixtapes and caught the attention of local radio in Uniontown, Alabama. He released his first album Rydaz Redemption in 2011. Over the years, he has worked with other notable artists like Juvenile, Young Bleed, La Chat, Charlie Boy, and more.
TLE Cinco
We have to mention Alabama’s very own TLE Cinco. He has been one of the most notable figures in the trap rap sphere lately. The young artist is definitely on the rise. His first 13-track project, 20Cinco features Tee Grizzley on a remix of his track, All The Money. The young rapper says he was inspired by Meek Mill and looked up to the Philly rapper since the sixth grade. He uses music to express how he feels, sometimes on things he doesn’t want to talk about with others.
Drama
Here is another popular Alabama rapper. Born as Terence Cook in December 1981, Drama is an American Dirty South rapper. He is best known for his 1999 single, Left, Right, Left.
The same year he signed with Atlantic Records. In 2000, he released his debut album Causin’ Drama. But he was jailed for violating probation and spent 90 days in prison. Over the years, he has had other run-ins with law enforcement.
Flo Milli
It is time for a female rapper on our list, right? Born Tamia Monique Carter, Flo Milli is a female Alabama rapper. Born and raised in Mobile, Alabama, she began releasing music in 2015. She is part of the new generation of artists who get famous thanks to the social media platform TikTok. Her two singles, Beet Flo Mix and In The Party went viral on TikTok. That helped her secure a deal with RCA Records.
In July 2020, she released her debut mixtape, Ho Why Is You Here. That earned her a Best New Artist nomination at the 2020 BET Hip Hop Awards. Born in January 2000, she is among the youngest members of the Alabama hip-hop scene. Tamia wrote her first song at 9 years of age and began rapping at 11. She formed the rap group Real & Beautiful, later known as Pink Mafia. But she dissolved the group at age 14.
OMB Peezy
The American rapper is now based in Sacramento, California. But he was born in Mobile, Alabama. His real name is Le Paris Dade. OMB Peezy is among the more successful rappers from Alabama. In 2016, he released the song Lay Down to critical acclaim. In May 2017, he followed it up with the hit single When I Was Down.
Chika
Stylized CHIKA, she is an American rapper and a Grammy Award-nominated artist. Born in 1997 as Jane Chika Oranika, the young American rapper gained attention on social media first and then signed to Warner Records in 2019. In 2020, XXL magazine included her in the 2020 Freshman Class. She also earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best New Artist. She went viral on Instagram in November 2016, one day after the 2016 United States presidential election. In the video, she covers herself in a pale foundation and talks about the election. Then, in 2017, she created the #EgoChallenge, using Beyonce’s song to promote body positivity. In 2018, she again went viral for a freestyle addressed at Kanye West over his own Jesus Walks beat.
NoCap
Let’s finish off the list with Kobe Vidal Crawford, better known as NoCap. The American rapper, born in 1998, has released five mixtapes since 2017. In 2020, he released his highest-charting project, Steel Human. That one peaked at Number 31 on the Billboard 200 chart. NoCap is praised for his use of wordplay in the songs.
