Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Known for his eccentric vocal style and fashion, he is considered an influential figure in modern hip hop and trap music, and a pioneer of the mumble rap microgenre.
Williams embarked on a musical career in 2011, releasing a series of mixtapes beginning with I Came from Nothing. In 2013, he signed with fellow Atlanta rapper Gucci Mane's 1017 Records and gained further attention and praise for his debut mixtape with the label, 1017 Thug, released in February of that year.
Early life[]
Jeffery Lamar Williams was born on August 16, 1991, in Atlanta, Georgia, the tenth of eleven children. He is from Sylvan Hills,[1] but grew up in the Jonesboro South projects near Cleveland Avenue.[2][3] Other rappers from Jonesboro South include Waka Flocka Flame, Ludacris and Williams' childhood friend Peewee Longway, from whom Williams lived four doors down.[4][5] Williams has told interviewers that he was expelled in the sixth grade for breaking a teacher's arm. He was sent to juvenile prison for four years.[6]
Image and fashion[]
Vibe Magazine called Young Thug "one of the most unpredictable, charismatic, and outlandish personalities in hip hop today".[7] Rovi called him a "fashion icon".[8] His wardrobe has been described as eccentric and consists predominantly of women's clothing, which he has preferred to wear since age 12.[9] The Seattle Times wrote that "with a fashion sense as unconventional as his rapping, Young Thug can regularly be seen on his Instagram account rocking painted fingernails, skintight jeans or a kids-size dress as a shirt, which, along with his habit of regularly referring to close male friends as 'hubbie' or 'lover' has led to rumors about his sexual orientation".[10]
In an advertisement for Calvin Klein, Thug proclaimed "In my world, you can be a gangsta with a dress or you can be a gangsta with baggy pants".[11] Fusion described him as "defying gender stereotypes and agitating the way hip-hop defines black masculinity, through his eccentric sense of style".[12] He has been compared to David Bowie, Prince, and Little Richard.[13] The media has called him gender fluid and androgynous.[14] GQ called him "at once a hero and an outsider and a leader of the psychedelic fashion movement of rap hippies".[15]
In February 2018, Young Thug rebranded himself as "SEX".[16]
Philanthropy[]
In December 2016, Thug joined the #fightpovertyagain campaign[17]. On June 29, 2017, Thug donated all proceeds of a sold-out concert to Planned Parenthood, stating on X/Twitter that "I was a teenage parent. Planned+unplanned parenthood is beautiful".[18]
Discography[]
Studio albums[]
- So Much Fun (2019)
- Punk (2021)
- Business Is Business (2023)
Compilation albums[]
- Slime Language (with YSL Records) (2018)
- Slime Language 2 (with YSL Records and Gunna) (2021)
Mixtapes[]
- I Came from Nothing (2011)
- I Came from Nothing 2 (2011)
- I Came from Nothing 3 (2012)
- 1017 Thug (2013)
- Black Portland (with Bloody Jay) (2014)
- Young Thugga Mane La Flare (with Gucci Mane) (2014)
- World War 3D: The Purple Album (Gucci Mane featuring Young Thug) (2014)
- 1017 Thug 2 (2014)
- 1017 Thug 3: The Finale (2014)
- Rich Gang: Tha Tour Pt. 1 (with Birdman and Rich Homie Quan; as Rich Gang) (2014)
- Slime Season (2015)
- Slime Season 2 (2015)
Commercial mixtapes[]
- Barter 6 (2015)
- I'm Up (2016)
- Slime Season 3 (2016)
- Jeffery (2016)
- Beautiful Thugger Girls (2017)
Collaborative mixtapes[]
- Super Slimey (with Future) (2017)
- Slime & B (with Chris Brown) (2020)
EPs[]
- Young Martha (with Carnage) (2017)
- Hear No Evil (2018)
- On the Rvn (2018)
Collaborations[]
- "Potion" (with Dua Lipa and Calvin Harris) - Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 (2022)
External links[]
- Rap/Hiphop Wiki
- Young Thug on YouTube
- Young Thug on TikTok
- Young Thug on Instagram
- Young Thug on Facebook
- Young Thug on X/Twitter
References[]
- ↑ "Archive Entertainment | Young Thug"
- ↑ "JEFFERY: The full Young Thug story, from Cleveland Avenue and beyond | Part 1"
- ↑ "GEN F: Young Thug"
- ↑ "5 things you should know about Young Thug"
- ↑ XXL - "Peewee Longway Is One of Hip-Hop's Secret Weapons Read More: Peewee Longway Is One of Hip-Hop's Secret Weapons"
- ↑ "Perma-Stoned Oddball Young Thug Is the Hottest Voice in Rap"
- ↑ "Young Thug Reveals That He's "Not Into Sex Like That""
- ↑ "About Young Thug"
- ↑ "Get Psyched for the Return of Young Thug and His Dresses"
- ↑ "5 things you should know about Young Thug"
- ↑ "Young Thug Breaks Down His Androgynous Style: 'There's No Such Thing As Gender'"
- ↑ "Why rapper Young Thug wears women's clothing"
- ↑ "A Loss for Words: Listening to the Post-Verba Genius of Young Thug"
- ↑ "Young Thug: 'I like everything people say about me – you gay, you a punk, you can't rap, you're the hardest'"
- ↑ "Young Thug Is an ATLien (and the Best Rapper Alive)"
- ↑ "Young Thug announces ridiculous name change"
- ↑ "Young Thug On The Fight Against Poverty: "I Always Want To Stay Involved.""
- ↑ Pitchfork - "Young Thug Donates New York Concert Proceeds to Planned Parenthood"