Marece Benjamin Richards (born September 2, 1983), better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Rich Boy, 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 ...

from Mobile, Alabama. He is best known for the hit single " Throw Some D's" (featuring Polow da Don) released in August 2006. It was the lead single for his eponymous debut album, released a year later in March under Polow da Don's Zone 4 and

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mu ...

. In 2009, one of his follow-up singles "

Drop Drop, DROP, drops or DROPS may refer to: * Drop (liquid) or droplet, a small volume of liquid ** Eye drops, saline (sometimes mydriatic) drops used as medication for the eyes * Drop (unit), a unit of measure of volume * Falling (physics), allowi ...

" became popular online through remixes and freestyles from then-upcoming internet rappers, including

Childish Gambino Donald McKinley Glover Jr. (; born September 25, 1983), also known by his stage name Childish Gambino (), is an American entertainer, writer, director, and producer. After working in Derrick Comedy while studying at New York University, Glov ...

Kid Cudi Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi (born January 30, 1984), also known by his stage name Kid Cudi ( ), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and fashion designer. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Cudi would move to New Y ...

, and

Earl Sweatshirt Thebe Neruda Kgositsile (born February 24, 1994), also known by his stage name Earl Sweatshirt, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Kgositsile was originally known by the moniker Sly Tendencies when he began rapping in 2008, ...

Early life and education

Richards is from

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

. He was studying mechanical engineering at

Tuskegee University Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU), formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute, is a private, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was founded on Independence Day in 1881 by the state legislature. The campus was ...

, but he dropped out to concentrate on pursuing a rap career.

Career

Rich Boy signed a contract with Zone 4 through

and started to work on his debut album. In the meantime, he appeared on one of Ludacris'

Disturbing tha Peace Disturbing tha Peace Records (DTP) is an American record label founded by Ludacris, Jeff Dixon, and Chaka Zulu. History Beginnings Disturbing tha Peace was founded in 1998 by Christopher "Ludacris" Bridges, manager Chaka Zulu, and Zulu's brother ...

compilations and on a few mixtapes, such as '' Comeback Season'' by Canadian rapper

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

and ''Da Bottom, Vol. 5'' by DJ Ideal and

Jermaine Dupri Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ. Early life Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972, the son of Tina (Mosley) and Michael ...

. On March 13, 2007, Rich Boy released his self-titled debut album, with the singles " Throw Some D's," " Boy Looka Here," "''Good Things''", and " Let's Get This Paper". "Throw Some D's" reached #6 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, #3 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

, and #2 on the

Hot Rap Tracks Hot Rap Songs (formerly known as Hot Rap Tracks and Hot Rap Singles) is a chart released weekly by '' Billboard'' in the United States. It lists the 25 most popular hip-hop/rap songs, calculated weekly by airplay on rhythmic and urban radio sta ...

chart. "Boy Looka Here" and "Good Things" both peaked around #50 on the R&B chart. In 2009 he released a single, "Top of the World", which was part of the album Music Inspired by '' More Than a Game''. Rich Boy's second album was intended in 2010 to be titled ''Resurrected in Diamonds'' and was slated for a 2013 release. The intended first single released off the album was "

" which had been released in the beginning of early 2009. Another track "She Luvs Me (She Luvs Mi Knot)" featuring Polow da Don was released on June 21, 2010. Both Dr. Dre and Polow da Don were confirmed contributors or producers for the album. On March 18, 2013, Rich Boy released the mixtape ''Back to Class'' in promotion of his second studio album, '' Break the Pot''. On January 14, 2013, the title track was released as a single in promotion of the album, featuring Hemi. On February 25, 2013, it was announced that ''Break the Pot'' would be released on April 9, 2013, and would feature guest appearances from Maino, Mista Raja,

Bobby V Bobby Marcel Wilson (born February 27, 1980), better known by his stage name Bobby V (also known as Bobby Valentino), is an American R&B singer. He was first a member of the R&B group Mista in 1994, before signing to rapper Ludacris through h ...

, Doe B, Playboi Lo and Smash. On March 17, the music video for "Break the Pot" premiered on ''

MTV Jams BET Jams is an American pay television network controlled by BET Networks and owned by Paramount Media Networks. The channel features hip-hop and urban contemporary music videos. The network, formerly known as MTV Jams, was rebranded under the ...

''. ''Break the Pot'' was released on April 9, 2013, and included the single "Pimp On", which featured Doe B, Playboi Lo and Smash.

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

Mixtapes

Singles

Awards and nominations

BET Hip Hop Awards The BET Hip Hop Awards are an annual awards show, airing on BET, showcasing hip hop performers, producers and music video directors. The awards ceremony began in 2006; it was held on November 12, 2006 at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, a ...

*2007: Rookie Of the Year in''

References

External links

Official FaceBook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rich Boy 1983 births Living people African-American male rappers Musicians from Mobile, Alabama Place of birth missing (living people) Rappers from Alabama Southern hip hop musicians Tuskegee University alumni 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people