Alvin Lamar Worthy (born July 27, 1982), known professionally as Westside Gunn, is an American

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

. He is a co-founder of independent hip-hop label

Griselda Records Griselda Records is an American hip hop independent record label based in Buffalo, New York. It was founded by rapper Westside Gunn, his brother Conway the Machine, and Mach-Hommy in 2012. In addition to the founding members, Benny the Butcher ...

. He is the brother of rapper

Conway The Machine Demond Price (born February 16, 1982), known professionally as Conway the Machine (or simply Conway), is an American rapper. Alongside his paternal half-brother Westside Gunn and cousin Benny the Butcher, Conway was a member of Griselda Record ...

and cousin of rapper

Benny the Butcher Jeremie Damon Pennick (born November 27, 1984), known professionally as Benny the Butcher or simply Benny, is an American rapper. He is part of the hip hop collective Griselda with frequent collaborators and first-cousins Westside Gunn and Co ...

, both of whom he frequently collaborates with. Westside Gunn has released four studio albums in addition to an extensive catalog of mixtapes. Gunn was affiliated with

Shady Records Shady Records is an American record label founded by rapper Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg, after the highly successful release of Eminem's ''The Slim Shady LP'' (1999). Shady has seen negative times when being part of the unsuccessful ...

from 2017 to 2020, but has since returned to independent status.

Career

Westside Gunn released his first mixtape in 2005, however his career was derailed by run-ins with the law. Gunn did not release any music in the years 2006-2011. In 2012, Westside Gunn co-founded the Griselda Records label with his brother

Conway the Machine Demond Price (born February 16, 1982), known professionally as Conway the Machine (or simply Conway), is an American rapper. Alongside his paternal half-brother Westside Gunn and cousin Benny the Butcher, Conway was a member of Griselda Record ...

and Mach-Hommy. Gunn was inspired to revitalize his career by the shooting of his brother Conway that same year, which left him with permanent disabilities, as well as by the 2006 murder of his cousin Machine Gun Black. Gunn’s first project for Griselda was the mixtape ''Hitler Wears Hermes.'' While the name attracted controversy for its reference to

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

, Gunn explained that the name is a play on '' The Devil Wears Prada''. Over the next few years, Gunn released a steady stream of mixtapes and EPs, including multiple sequels to ''Hitler Wears Hermes,'' on the Griselda label. Gunn’s official studio album debut was ''Flygod,'' released on March 11, 2016. On March 3, 2017, Griselda Records signed a deal with

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing Hip hop music, hip hop in Middle America (United Sta ...

, making Westside Gunn and Conway the first rappers from Buffalo to sign with a major label. After signing with Shady, Gunn played at Coachella,

Firefly The Lampyridae are a family of elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production ...

and Governors Ball. On October 2, 2020, Westside Gunn released his

debut, ''

Who Made the Sunshine ''Who Made the Sunshine'' (stylised in all caps) is the fourth studio album by American rapper Westside Gunn. When it was originally scheduled to be released on August 28, 2020, it was postponed following the death of Griselda Records collaborator ...

'', his only solo project with

. Shortly after signing with Shady Records, Westside released ''Flygod Is Good... All the Time'', as a collaborative EP with producer Mr. Green. Ambrosia For Heads named 2018's ''

Supreme Blientele ''Supreme Blientele'' is the second studio album by American rapper Westside Gunn from Buffalo, New York. It was released on June 22, 2018 through Griselda Records with distribution by Empire Distribution. Its titles allude to Ghostface Killah's a ...

'' one of the best albums of 2018. He also signed with

Roc Nation Roc Nation is an entertainment agency founded by Jay-Z in 2008. The company is headquartered in Manhattan and has additional offices in Los Angeles and London. Roc Nation comprises a comprehensive talent agency, sports agency, record label, mana ...

alongside label mate Benny the Butcher on August 6, 2019, under a management deal. On April 17, 2020, he released his third studio album, ''

Pray for Paris ''Pray for Paris'' is the third studio album by American rapper Westside Gunn. It was released on April 17, 2020 through Griselda Records with distribution by Empire Distribution. The album was produced by Daringer, Beat Butcha, the Alchemist, DJ ...

''. The album has features from artists such as

Tyler, the Creator Tyler Gregory Okonma (born March 6, 1991), known professionally as Tyler, the Creator, is an American rapper and record producer. He is one of the founding members of the music collective Odd Future. Okonma self-released his debut mixtape ' ...

, Wale,

Joey Badass Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott (born January 20, 1995), known professionally as Joey Badass (stylized as Joey Bada$$), is an American rapper, singer, and actor. A native of Brooklyn, New York City, he is a founding member of the hip-hop collective Pr ...

and

Freddie Gibbs Fredrick Jamel Tipton (born June 14, 1982), better known by his stage name Freddie Gibbs, is an American rapper from Gary, Indiana. After initially being signed to Interscope Records in 2006, Gibbs recorded his debut studio album under the label ...

. On July 3, 2020, Westside Gunn released his tenth mixtape ''Flygod Is an Awesome God II'', the sequel to his July 2019 mixtape ''Flygod Is an Awesome God''. The album features guest appearances by frequent collaborators Benny The Butcher, Keisha Plum,

Boldy James James Clay Jones III (born August 9, 1982), better known by his stage name Boldy James, is an American rapper from Detroit, Michigan. A member of the Griselda collective, his debut album, '' My 1st Chemistry Set'', was released on October 15, 2 ...

, and Daringer. On November 14, 2020, in an interview with

Joe Budden Joseph Anthony Budden II (born August 31, 1980) is an American media personality and former rapper. He first gained recognition as a rapper with his 2003 top 40 single " Pump It Up" and as a member of the hip hop supergroup Slaughterhouse. In ...

, Gunn announced he had fulfilled his contractual obligations to Shady Records and had become an independent artist.

Personal life

Gunn has stated within various interviews that he's a "devout wrestling fan" and often references this within his song lyrics and song titles. He often can be seen in the front-row seats of the audience of

Impact Wrestling Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment. Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promo ...

, WWE and

All Elite Wrestling All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. It is considered the second largest wrestling promotion in the United States behind WWE. AEW is owned by Shahid Khan and his son Tony, ...

events. He maintains friendships with wrestlers Parker Boudreaux,

Lio Rush Lionel Gerard Green (born November 11, 1994), better known by the ring name Lio Rush, is an American professional wrestler and musician currently signed to New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), where he is a member of the Chaos stable. He has also a ...

Finn Bálor Fergal Devitt (born 25 July 1981) is an Irish professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Finn Bálor (), and is a member of The Judgment Day. Devitt is widely known for his t ...

Bianca Belair Bianca Blair Crawford (born Bianca Nicole Blair; April 9, 1989) is an American professional wrestler and a fitness and figure competitor. She is currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Bianca Belair, and ...

, Montez Ford,

Montel Vontavious Porter Hassan Hamin Assad (born Alvin Antonio Burke Jr.; October 28, 1973) is an American professional wrestler and manager currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name MVP (standing for Montel Vontavious Porter) a ...

Sonjay Dutt Retesh Bhalla (born April 7, 1982) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a producer and manager. He is best known for his time with Total Nonstop ActionImpact Wrestling under the ring name Sonjay ...

, Daniel Garcia, and Myron Reed. When asked who were his top 5 wrestlers on fellow rapper Smoke DZA's "Personal Podcast", he stated "It always changes but

Hulk Hogan Terry Eugene Bollea (; born August 11, 1953), better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is widely regarded as the most recognized wrestling star worldwide and the most popular wrestler of the 19 ...

, The Rock,

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling back ...

The Undertaker Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by the ring name The Undertaker, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway spent the vast majorit ...

and

Chris Benoit Christopher Michael Benoit (; May 21, 1967 – June 24, 2007) was a Canadian professional wrestler. He worked for various pro-wrestling promotions during his 22-year career including most notably the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestlin ...

". On the September 7, 2022 edition of All Elite Wrestling Dynamite, Gunn escorted wrestler and close friend Daniel Garcia to the ring to face

Wheeler Yuta Paul Gruber (born October 26, 1996), is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Wheeler Yuta (sometimes stylized as Wheeler YUTA). He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is the current ROH Pure Cha ...

in an

ROH Pure Championship The ROH Pure Championship is a professional wrestling championship contested for in the American professional wrestling promotion Ring of Honor (ROH). The championship is generally contested in professional wrestling matches, in which participant ...

match, which Garcia won.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

Flygod Alvin Lamar Worthy (born July 27, 1982), known professionally as Westside Gunn, is an American rapper. He is a co-founder of independent hip-hop label Griselda Records. He is the brother of rapper Conway The Machine and cousin of rapper Benny ...

'' (2016) * ''

'' (2018) * ''

'' (2020) * ''

'' (2020)

With Griselda

* ''

Don't Get Scared Now ''Don't Get Scared Now'' is the debut extended play by American hip hop record label Griselda Records, released on May 13, 2016, by Griselda Records. The EP is produced by Daringer and The Alchemist and features a guest appearance from Prodigy. ...

'' (2016) * '' WWCD'' (2019)

EPs

* ''There's God and There's Flygod, Praise Both'' (2016) * ''Riots on Fashion Avenue'' (with Mil Beats) (2017) * ''Flygod Is Good... All the Time'' (with Mr. Green) (2018)

Mixtapes

* ''Flyest Nigga in Charge Vol. 1'' (2005) *''Hitler Wears Hermes'' (2012) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 2'' (2014) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 3'' (2015) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 4'' (2016) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 5 (''2017) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 6'' (2018) * ''Flygod is an Awesome God'' (2019) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 7'' (2019) * ''Flygod is an Awesome God II'' (2020) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Sincerly, Adolf'' (2021) * ''Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B'' (2021) * ''Peace "Fly" God'' (2022) * ''10'' (2022)

Collaborative mixtapes

* ''Hall & Nash'' (with

) (2015) * ''Griselda Ghost'' (with Conway The Machine and Big Ghost LTD) (2015) * ''Roses are Red So... Is Blood'' (with The Purist) (2016) * ''Hitler on Steroids'' (with DJ Green Lantern) (2017)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:WestSideGunn 1982 births Living people Five percenters American male rappers Shady Records artists East Coast hip hop musicians 21st-century American rappers Rappers from New York (state) Musicians from Buffalo, New York American music industry executives Underground rappers Indie rappers Gangsta rappers 21st-century American male musicians Businesspeople from Buffalo, New York 21st-century African-American musicians