Shelley Marshaun Massenburg-Smith (born August 3, 1988), known professionally as DRAM (); an abbreviation for "does real-ass music", formerly Shelley FKA DRAM, is a German-born American rapper, singer, and record producer from

Hampton, Virginia Hampton () is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 137,148. It is the 7th most populous city in Virginia and 204th most populous city in the nation. Hampton ...

. He is signed to

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most ...

and

Empire Distribution EMPIRE Distribution, Records and Publishing Inc. (marketed as EMPIRE) is an American distribution company and record label founded in by Ghazi Shami with offices in New York City, London, Nashville, and Atlanta. It has released albums in vario ...

. His debut single was "Cha Cha", followed by his breakout single "

Broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large flowering head, stalk and small associated leaves are eaten as a vegetable. Broccoli is clas ...

" (featuring

Lil Yachty Miles Parks McCollum (born August 23, 1997), known professionally as Lil Boat, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer. He first gained recognition on the internet in 2015 for his singles " One Night" and "Minnesota" (featuring ...

), which peaked at number five on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In October 2016, he released his debut studio album ''

Big Baby DRAM ''Big Baby DRAM'' is the debut studio album by American rapper DRAM. It was released on October 21, 2016, by Empire Distribution and Atlantic Records. The album features guest appearances from Young Thug, Erykah Badu, Lil Yachty, Playboi Carti, ...

''.

Early life

Massenburg-Smith was born in

Landstuhl Landstuhl () is a town in the Kaiserslautern district of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. It is the seat of ''Verbandsgemeinde Landstuhl'', a kind of "collective municipality." Landstuhl is situated on the north-west edge of the Palatinate F ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

. Before the age of one, he moved to the United States and was raised in

. His mother was in the military.Lawrence Burney
Meet D.R.A.M., the Virginia Artist Who Stopped Following the Rules of Rap and Had One Epic Summer

Vice Media Vice Media Group LLC is an American-Canadian digital media and broadcasting company. , the Vice Media Group included five main business areas: VICE.com (digital content); VICE STUDIOS (film and TV production) VICE TV (also known as VICELAND); ...

, October 8, 2014 As a teenager, Massenburg-Smith was an ardent fan of the singer Bilal and recalls discovering his unreleased second album '' Love for Sale'' when it

leaked A leak is a way (usually an opening) for fluid to escape a container or fluid-containing system, such as a tank or a ship's hull, through which the contents of the container can escape or outside matter can enter the container. Leaks are usuall ...

online in 2006, later citing the song "White Turns to Grey" as his favorite "hidden gem" in music.

Career

In March 2015, DRAM released his debut EP, ''#1Epic'' through

and

. The EP included the single "Cha Cha", which peaked at number one on the Bubbling Under Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart. In October 2015, his debut mixtape, ''Gahdamn!'' was released. In April 2016, DRAM released his hit single "

" featuring

. The song gained international success and peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming his first top five song in the country. In October 2016, he appeared on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh in ...

'', performing "Blessings (Reprise)" with

Chance the Rapper Chancelor Johnathan Bennett (born April 16, 1993), known professionally as Chance the Rapper, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, and record producer. Born and raised in Chicago, Bennett released his debut mixtape ''10 Day'' in 2012. He ...

Ty Dolla Sign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He first gained major recognition in 2010 for his feature on Ameri ...

, Anthony Hamilton and

Raury Raury Deshawn Tullis (born June 10, 1996) is an American singer-songwriter and rapper from Atlanta, Georgia. He is known for his eclectic sound mixing soul, hip hop and folk. He was born and raised in Stone Mountain, Georgia. He was also a member ...

. His debut studio album, ''

'', was released on October 21, 2016. The album received many positive reviews. DRAM was featured on the single " Andromeda" from British virtual band

Gorillaz Gorillaz are an English virtual band formed in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, from London. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: 2-D (character), 2-D (Singing, vocals, Musical keyboard, keyboards), Murd ...

for their fifth album, ''

Humanz ''Humanz'' is the fifth studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz. It was released on 28 April 2017 in the United Kingdom by Parlophone and in the United States by Warner Bros. Records. The album was announced on the band's official Insta ...

''. He also provided uncredited guest vocals on the track " We Got the Power" from the same album. He voices Wallace from '' Lazor Wulf''.

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Mixtapes

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Other charted songs

Guest appearances

Awards and nominations

Notes

References

External links

Shelley FKA DRAM
on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming s ...

Shelley FKA DRAM
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:DRAM 1988 births Living people African-American male rappers American male rappers People from Neustadt an der Weinstraße 20th-century African-American people Musicians from Hampton, Virginia 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians Atlantic Records artists 21st-century African-American musicians Southern hip hop musicians American contemporary R&B singers