Gerald Earl Gillum (born May 24, 1989), better known by his stage name G-Eazy, is an American rapper. Based in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

, he began his career in 2006 and released two independent studio albums before signing with

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic R ...

to release his third album and

major label "Big Three" music labels A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and t ...

debut, '' These Things Happen'' (2014). It peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' 200 and spawned the single "

I Mean It "I Mean It" is a song by American rapper G-Eazy featuring fellow rapper and record producer Remo (otherwise credited as Remo the Hitmaker). It was released on May 13, 2014, as the fifth single from the former's debut studio album '' These Things ...

" (featuring Remo), which received

triple platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

certification by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) and marked his first entry on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His fourth album, '' When It's Dark Out'' (2015), was met with similar commercial success and spawned the single " Me, Myself & I" (with

Bebe Rexha Bleta "Bebe" Rexha ( , ; born August 30, 1989) is an American singer and songwriter. She signed with Warner Records in 2013, and was credited with co-writing releases of other artists—such as Eminem's Grammy Award-winning single " The Monster" ...

), which peaked at number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His fifth album, '' The Beautiful & Damned'' (2017), saw continued success and matched ''These Things Happen'' on the ''Billboard'' 200. It was led by the single " No Limit" (featuring

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Cephus (; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper. Noted for her unfiltered public image and lyrics, Cardi B is one of the most successful female rappers. From 2015 to early 2017, she ga ...

and

ASAP Rocky Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a member of the hip hop music, hip hop coll ...

), which peaked at number four on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and remains his highest-charting song. His sixth album, '' These Things Happen Too'' (2021), was met with a commercial decline, peaking at number 19 on the ''Billboard'' 200. His seventh album, ''Freak Show'' (2024), failed to chart in any known territory.

Early life

Gerald Earl Gillum was born on May 24, 1989, the eldest of two sons of Edward Gillum, an art professor at

California State University, Fresno California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers 60 ba ...

, and Suzanne Olmsted, an artist and professor. He is named after his maternal grandfather. He has a younger brother, James (born 1992) who is also a musician. His father is of partial Mexican descent. When Gillum was in first grade, his mother left his father, and Gillum then moved in with his grandparents in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

, where he attended Berkeley High School. They later moved to North Oakland, although Gillum continued to attend school in Berkeley. Gillum attended

Loyola University New Orleans Loyola University New Orleans is a Private university, private Jesuit university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Originally established as Loyola College in 1904, the institution was chartered as a university in 1912. It bears the nam ...

, where he graduated with a BA in music industry studies in 2011.

Career

2008–14: Career beginnings

Starting out as a

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

, G-Eazy began working on singles while he was still a student at the Loyola University at New Orleans with his producer Christoph Andersson who also was a student there. He gained some recognition for being a part of the new

hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...

scene back in the

East Bay The East Bay is the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area and includes cities along the eastern shores of San Francisco Bay and San Pablo Bay. The region has grown to include inland communities in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. Wi ...

Area, joining with such artists as

Lil B Brandon Christopher McCartney (born August 17, 1989), known professionally as Lil B and Lil B The BasedGod, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of the Berkeley, California-based hip hop group the Pack in 2005, who signed wi ...

, Crohn and

The Cataracs The Cataracs are an United States, American hip hop music, hip hop record production project and duo formed in Berkeley, California, consisting of David "Campa" Benjamin Singer-Vine (born March 9, 1988) and KSHMR, Niles "Cyrano" Hollowell-Dhar ...

.Hildebrand, Lee
Hip hopper G-Eazy on the brink
''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

'', November 19, 2014. He became a member of a local hip-hop group called "The Bay Boyz", who had released several songs on their

Myspace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

page. In 2008, he was performing at a college talent show and was nearly booed off, when Matt Bauerschmidt noticed him and signed him as a client to his new music management company The Revels Group that he started with Matt Davis. In 2010, G-Eazy was given an opportunity to open for some well-known artists, most notably

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...

and

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

. G-Eazy's mixtapes at this period of time were met with limited success. In August 2011, he released ''

The Endless Summer ''The Endless Summer'' is a 1966 American surf movie, surf documentary film directed, produced, edited and narrated by Bruce Brown (director), Bruce Brown. The film follows surfers Mike Hynson and Robert August on a surfing trip around the wor ...

'', with an updated version of the 1961 hit song " Runaround Sue", which garnered over four million views via YouTube. The music video was directed by Tyler Yee. The mixtape features guest appearances from Greg Banks, Erika Flowers and Devon Baldwin. In November 2011, Gillum embarked on a nationwide tour with Shwayze. "My Life Is a Party" was featured in the game '' Saints Row: The Third'' on an in-game radio station. G-Eazy 2013

On June 16, 2012, G-Eazy performed all United States dates on the annual

Vans Warped Tour The Warped Tour is a touring rock music festival that toured the United States and Canada each summer from 1995 until 2019, and returned in 2025 for its 30th anniversary. By 2015, Warped was the largest traveling music festival in the United S ...

. On July 25, 2012, the Excellent Adventure Tour was announced, which featured Hoodie Allen and G-Eazy. The two performed in cities across the U.S., including Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Columbus, Des Moines, New Orleans, Atlanta, Austin, and Philadelphia. On September 26, 2012, G-Eazy released his first full-length album, '' Must Be Nice''. The album, which was completely independent of a label, landed at number 3 on the

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

Hip-Hop Chart. On July 9, 2013, G-Eazy, alongside

2 Chainz Tauheed K. Epps (born September 12, 1977), known professionally as 2 Chainz (formerly Tity Boi), is an American rapper and actor. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia, he gained recognition as one-half of the Southern hip-hop duo Playaz Ci ...

, opened for Lil Wayne's "America's Most Wanted Tour". On December 15, 2013, G-Eazy and Master Chen B performed "Lotta That" from '' These Things Happen'' in New York City. On January 15, 2014, G-Eazy announced his "These Things Happen Tour" with

Rockie Fresh Donald Howard Pullen (born April 16, 1991), known professionally as Rockie Fresh, is an American rapper. He was signed to Rick Ross' Maybach Music Group and Atlantic Records. Pullen is known for his alternatively influenced style of hip-hop, and ...

, KYLE, and

Tory Lanez Daystar Shemuel Shua Peterson (born July 27, 1992), known professionally as Tory Lanez, is a Canadian singer-songwriter and record producer. First discovered by Sean Kingston, he received initial recognition for his mixtape ''Conflicts of My S ...

accompanying him. The tour ran for 40 stops throughout the United States and Canada from February until April 2014.

2014–16: ''These Things Happen'' and ''When It's Dark Out''

On June 23, 2014, G-Eazy released his major-label debut album, '' These Things Happen''. The album topped the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hip-Hop/R&B and Top Rap Albums charts, also earning him the number 3 spot on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and the Top Digital Albums Chart. The album has sold nearly 265,000 copies to date. On October 21, 2014, Gillum embarked on his sold-out "From the Bay to the Universe" tour. The tour traveled across the globe to countries like Australia and New Zealand. This was his first headlining tour overseas. During the summer of 2015, G-Eazy played some of the main stages at a series of notable music festivals, including

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza () is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991, with Chicago becoming its permanent location beginning in 2005. Music genres i ...

Electric Forest Electric Forest is a multi-genre music festival produced by Madison House Presents and Insomniac Events, with a focus on electronic music and jam band genres. Originally named Rothbury Festival in 2008, it is held in Rothbury, Michigan at ...

Bonnaroo Bonnaroo (or Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival) is an American annual four-day music festival developed and founded by Superfly Presents and AC Entertainment. Bonnaroo has taken place at what is now Great Stage Park, a 700-acre (280 ha) far ...

Outside Lands Outside Lands was the name used in the 19th century for the present-day Richmond District and Sunset District on the West Side of San Francisco. With few roads and no public transportation, the area was covered by sand dunes and was conside ...

, Made in America, and

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American Concert, live music Television show, television program recorded and produced by KLRU, Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", an ...

. With the rise of his music career, Gillum has also taken up in interest in fashion by releasing a collaboration with Rare Panther in the fall of 2015 and being named

GQ Magazine ''GQ'' (short for ''Gentlemen's Quarterly'' and previously known as ''Apparel Arts'') is an international monthly men's magazine based in New York City and founded in 1931. The publication focuses on fashion, style, and culture for men, though ...

's top 10 most stylish at

New York Fashion Week New York Fashion Week (NYFW), held in February and September of each year, is a semi-annual series of events in Manhattan typically spanning seven to nine days when international Fashion design, fashion collections are shown to buyers, the pres ...

. Gillum's second album, '' When It's Dark Out'', was released on December 4, 2015. On January 6, 2016, G-Eazy launched his second world tour. The tour saw G-Eazy tour the United States, Europe, and Australia. His single " Me, Myself & I", in collaboration with

, peaked at number 7 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100. He co-headlined the Endless Summer tour with American rapper

Logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure o ...

, along with YG and

Yo Gotti Mario Sentell Giden Mims (born May 19, 1981), known professionally as Yo Gotti, is an American rapper, singer, and record executive. Rooted in Memphis rap, he released five independent albums—''Youngsta's on a Come Up'' (1996), ''From da Dope ...

as supporting acts, from June to August. Before the tour, he announced his new

mixtape In the modern music industry, a mixtape is a musical project, typically with looser constraints than that of an album or extended play. Unlike the traditional album or extended play, mixtapes are labeled as laid-back projects that allow artists mo ...

, Endless Summer II. He cancelled the tape due to problems with sample clearance. In May 2016, G-Eazy confirmed that he would be featured on

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...

' single " Make Me...". The single was released on July 15, 2016, and serves as the lead single from Spears' ninth studio album. G-Eazy performed "Make Me..." and "Me, Myself & I" with Spears at the

2016 MTV Video Music Awards The 2016 MTV Video Music Awards were held on Sunday night, August 28, 2016 at 9:00–11:54pm EDT at Madison Square Garden in Midtown Manhattan, Manhattan, New York City. Adele's " Hello" was the most nominated video with seven categories. This ...

and the 2016

iHeartRadio Music Festival The iHeartRadio Music Festival is a two-day music concert festival held every year on the third or fourth weekend of September since 2011 by iHeartRadio along the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. From 2011 to 2015, the f ...

2017–18: ''Step Brothers'' and ''The Beautiful & Damned''

Gillum released an EP with Guatemalan DJ Carnage called '' Step Brothers'' on March 27, 2017. G-Eazy released his new single, a collaboration with American singer

Kehlani Kehlani Ashley Parrish ( ; born April 24, 1995) is an American singer, songwriter and dancer. She is originally from Oakland, California, and achieved initial fame as a member of the teen pop group PopLyfe in 2011. Kehlani's debut mixtape, '' ...

called " Good Life", which is a part of the eighth installment of the film franchise ''

Fast & Furious ''Fast & Furious'', also known as ''The Fast and the Furious'', is an American Action film, action media franchise centered on a series of films revolving around street racing, heist film, heists, and spy film, spies. The franchise also inclu ...

'', titled ''

The Fate of the Furious ''The Fate of the Furious'' (also known as ''F8'' or ''Fast & Furious 8'') is a 2017 action film directed by F. Gary Gray and written by Chris Morgan. It is the sequel to '' Furious 7'' (2015) and the eighth installment in the ''Fast & Furiou ...

''. He was also featured in the new

Dillon Francis Dillon Hart Francis (born October 5, 1987), also known as DJ Hanzel, is an American electronic music producer and DJ. He played a key role in popularizing moombahton and later developed its heavier variants, moombahcore and EDM trap. Earl ...

single titled " Say Less". On June 14, 2017, G-Eazy announced through

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

and

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

that his next studio album, '' The Beautiful & Damned'', would be released in the fall of 2017. On November 8, 2017, the official release day was announced as December 15, as well as an accompanying short film. On December 5, 2017, G-Eazy released his second single from ''The Beautiful & Damned'' titled " Him & I" with Halsey, with whom he was in a relationship. They performed the song together on

Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve ''Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve'' (''NYRE''), billed since 2008 as ''Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest'', is a New Year's Eve television special broadcast by American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The special broadcasts ...

of 2017. On February 27, 2019, G-Eazy released the single, "West Coast", featuring

Blueface Johnathan Jamall Porter (born January 20, 1997), known professionally as Blueface, is an American rapper. In October 2018, after releasing the music video for his song "Respect My Cryppin'", he became a viral meme due to his Off-beat (music)#On- ...

and released the video on March 28, 2019, adding ALLBLACK and YG.

2019–21: Acting debut, ''B-Sides'', ''Scary Nights'', ''Everything's Strange Here'' and ''These Things Happen Too''

G-Eazy released an EP ''B-Sides'' on June 25, 2019, which contained the songs that wouldn't make it onto his then-upcoming album. The EP spawned the song "Bang" with American rapper

Tyga Micheal Ray StevensonMicheal Ray Stevenson

. He later re-released the EP on August 22 and September 19 with additional tracks. He made his acting debut with

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

movie A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

'' Hustlers'', where he played Johnny, released in September 13, 2019. Gillum released the single "I Wanna Rock", featuring American rapper Gunna, as the lead single of his EP ''Scary Nights'', on October 16. The EP was released on October 18. In March 2020, G-Eazy announced a new project featuring an indie rock sound titled '' Everything's Strange Here.'' The album was officially released on June 26, 2020. G-Eazy released his long anticipated fourth studio album '' These Things Happen Too'' on September 24, 2021. It was supported by the singles "Running Wild (Tumblr Girls 2)" featuring Kossisko, and " Breakdown" featuring

Demi Lovato Demetria Devonne "Demi" Lovato ( ; born August 20, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. After appearing on the children's television series ''Barney & Friends'' (2002–2004), she starred in the Disney Channel short series ...

in the weeks leading up to the release date.

2022–present: Hiatus and ''Freak Show''

In April 2022, G-Eazy released the song "Angel" which is a tribute to his mother who died in November 2021. In March 2023, he released "Tulips and Roses", which is his comeback single after a year of hiatus. G-Eazy appeared in a few interviews over summer 2023 to confirm that his next album will be coming soon. On April 4, 2024, he released "Femme Fatale" featuring

Coi Leray Coi Leray Collins (born May 11, 1997) is an American rapper and singer. The daughter of rapper and media executive Benzino, she began her musical career in 2018 with the release of her debut mixtape, ''Everythingcoz''. She signed with Republic ...

and

Kaliii Kaliya Ashley Ross (born July 29, 2000), known professionally as Kaliii (previously known simply as Kali), is an American rapper from Roswell, Georgia. She is best known for her hit single "Area Codes", which went viral on the video-sharing pla ...

as the lead single to his upcoming seventh studio album ''Freak Show''. On June 6, 2024, he released "Anxiety" as the second single from the album. The album ''Freak Show'' was released June 21, 2024.

Philanthropy

In 2018, G-Eazy headlined a concert for Bay Area fire relief that raised $15 million, pulled out of a H&M sponsorship deal after blowback about a sweatshirt advertisement that some considered to be racist, performed at an Everytown fundraiser on the eve of

March For Our Lives March for Our Lives (MFOL) is a student-led organization which leads demonstrations in support of gun control legislation. The first demonstration took place in Washington, D.C., on March 24, 2018, with over 880 sibling events throughout ...

, and used his platform to speak out against gun violence. Also that year, G-Eazy launched the Endless Summer Fund, which is a non-profit dedicated to helping young people reach their full potential and strengthening the Bay Area community. In 2022, G-Eazy joined the ownership group of the purpose-driven, professional soccer team

Oakland Roots Oakland Roots Sports Club is an American professional soccer club based in Oakland, California. The club competes in the USL Championship (USLC) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 2018 by Edreece Arghandiwal and Benno Nagel, the c ...

Personal life

From 2017 to 2018, G-Eazy was in a highly publicized relationship with singer Halsey. From 2020 to 2021, G-Eazy was in a relationship with actress

Ashley Benson Ashley Victoria Benson (born December 18, 1989) is an American actress and singer. Her accolades include four Teen Choice Awards, a Young Hollywood Award, as well as three People's Choice Award nominations. Benson began her career as a compet ...

Legal issues

On May 2, 2018, Gillum was arrested in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

, Sweden on suspicion of assault and possession and use of drugs after he allegedly punched a security guard and was found to have

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

in his pocket. Gillum pleaded guilty to violent resistance, drug possession, and assault against an official in court on May 4. He was sentenced to

probation Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offence (law), offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration. In some jurisdictions, the term ''probation'' applies only to community sentences (alternatives to incar ...

and ordered to pay a fine of $10,000 and a $900 compensation fee to the security guard he assaulted. On September 13, 2021, he was arrested and charged with assault in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. It was reported that he assaulted two men at the Boom Boom Room at the Standard.

Discography

* ''The Epidemic LP'' (2008) * '' Must Be Nice'' (2012) * '' These Things Happen'' (2014) * '' When It's Dark Out'' (2015) * '' The Beautiful & Damned'' (2017) * '' These Things Happen Too'' (2021) * ''Freak Show'' (2024) * ''Helium'' (2025)

Filmography

Awards

MTV Europe Music Awards

, - , , 2016, , G-Eazy, , Best Hip-Hop Artist, ,

iHeartRadio Titanium Award

iHeartRadio Titanium Awards are awarded to an artist when their song reaches 1 Billion Spins across iHeartRadio Stations.

People's Choice Awards

, - , , 2017 , , G-Eazy , , Favorite Hip-Hop Artist , ,

References

External links

Official G-Eazy website

Official YouTube page
{{Authority control 1989 births Living people 21st-century American male rappers Loyola University New Orleans alumni Rappers from Oakland, California Alternative hip-hop musicians West Coast hip-hop musicians 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians Pop rappers Rappers from the San Francisco Bay Area American people of Mexican descent