Jonathan Matthew McCollum (born August 16, 1980), better known by his stage name Rittz, is an American rapper. His debut album '' The Life and Times of Jonny Valiant'' was released on April 30, 2013, rising to number 8 on ''Billboard''

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 ...

chart. His next two albums, '' Next to Nothing'' (2014) and '' Top of the Line'' (2016) peaked at number 3 on the same chart. His fourth album, '' Last Call'' (2017), hit number 43 on the

Billboard 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists. Sometimes, a rec ...

. All of these were released under

Tech N9ne Aaron Dontez Yates (born November 8, 1971), better known by his stage name Tech N9ne (pronounced "tech nine"), is an American rapper and singer. In 1999, he and business partner Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange Music. He has sold ...

Strange Music Strange Music is an American independent record label specializing in hip hop music and founded by Tech N9ne and Travis O'Guin in 1999. History In 2009 Skatterman & Snug Brim fulfilled their commitment to Strange Music and left the label. In ...

label. Rittz fulfilled his four-album contract with Strange, then formed his own record label, CNT Entertainment, through which he released '' Put a Crown on It'' in 2019. The album reflects Rittz's battle to free himself from drug and alcohol addiction. The album hit number 6 on ''Billboard''

Independent Albums The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...

chart.

Career

1980–2009: Early life and career

Rittz was born in Waynesburg,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, on August 16, 1980, and moved with his family to the suburbs of

Gwinnett County Gwinnett County ( ) is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. It forms part of the Atlanta metropolitan area, being located about northeast of Atlanta city limits. In 2020, the population was 957,062, making it the ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, when he was eight years old. His parents were intensely interested in

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

, ensuring that he and his siblings were exposed to musical instruments and recording studios from a young age. Around 2003, after numerous disappointments, Rittz's musical career stalled. "I won Battlegrounds on Hot 107.9, got retired and shit and felt like I was 'bout to make it. But, so many industry up and downs, with managers, contracts…" He was broke, feeling dejected, living with friends, and ready to resign from the rap game. However, in 2009 he was contacted by the rapper

Yelawolf Michael Wayne Atha (born December 30, 1979), better known by his stage name Yelawolf, is an American rapper. Born in Gadsden, Alabama, and raised in Antioch, Tennessee, he embarked on his recording career in 2005, releasing four mixtapes to pos ...

, and this led to financial support. "I had some money behind me." Rittz says, "Everything was going good and then everything fell out, at the same time, I'm getting older, thinking it's time to hang it up. This isn't gonna happen and that's when Yelawolf put me on 'Box Chevy'." Rittz stated in a 2013 interview that he had supported himself by working various "nine to five" jobs, such as in the restaurant industry. Rittz also went on to say that he would commonly tell people he was a rapper, even when he was not active.

2010–13: ''White Jesus'' and ''The Life and Times of Jonny Valiant''

Rittz's career breakthrough occurred with the release of Yelawolf's 2010 EP track "Box Chevy". Since then, he has frequently collaborated with Yelawolf, and the pair toured together on the 2012 Slumerican Tour. Rittz is also widely known for his 2011 mixtape ''White Jesus''. In 2012 he took his favorite songs from ''White Jesus'' and added a few new songs and re-released it as ''White Jesus: Revival''. Rittz signed to Tech N9ne's

in 2012. Rittz and Tech N9ne immediately began working together, releasing the popular collaboration remix of Rittz's "Bloody Murdah" shortly after Rittz joined the label. He released his solo debut, '' The Life and Times of Jonny Valiant'' on April 30, 2013. On October 15, 2013, Rittz appeared with fellow rappers Wax,

Rapsody Marlanna Evans (born January 21, 1983), better known by her stage name Rapsody, is an American rapper. After signing with music producer 9th Wonder's music label It's a Wonderful World Music Group, she released a series of mixtapes and collab ...

Emis Killa Emiliano Rudolf Giambelli (born 14 November 1989), known professionally as Emis Killa, is an Italian rapper. Early and personal life Emiliano Giambelli was born in Vimercate, Lombardy, to a Sicilian mother from Palermo who worked as a metalwo ...

and Jon Connor in the first cypher at the 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards.

2014–2017: ''Next to Nothing'', ''Top of the Line'' and ''Last Call''

In April 2014, Rittz announced via Facebook that he would release his next album ''Next To Nothing'' on September 9, 2014. In an August 2015 interview with NEHipHop, Rittz announced that he would be releasing an album in May 2016, titled ''Top of the Line''. In July 2017, Rittz announced that his next album would be titled ''Last Call'' and would be released on September 29, 2017. Following the release of ''Last Call'', Rittz had fulfilled his contractual obligations to Strange Music and decided not to renew his contract, amicably parting ways with the label. He founded his own label, CNT Entertainment.

Discography

Studio albums * '' The Life and Times of Jonny Valiant'' (2013) * '' Next to Nothing'' (2014) * '' Top of the Line'' (2016) * '' Last Call'' (2017) * '' Put a Crown on It'' (2019) * ''Picture Perfect'' (2020) * ''Rittzmas'' (2020) * ''MellowLOvation Music'' (2023)

References

{{Authority control 1980 births American male rappers Living people Rappers from Georgia (U.S. state) 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians