Rodney Ramone Hill Jr. (born December 28, 1979), better known by his stage name Rocko, is an American rapper and record executive from

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, Georgia. He is credited with having discovered fellow Atlanta-based rapper

Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ex ...

, who signed to Hill's record label,

A1 Recordings Rodney Ramone Hill Jr. (born December 28, 1979), better known by his stage name Rocko, is an American rapper and record executive from Atlanta, Georgia. He is credited with having discovered fellow Atlanta-based rapper Future, who signed to Hil ...

, in 2010. Hill served as

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

for Future's first six studio albums until his departure from the label in 2017. Prior, Hill released his debut studio album, '' Self Made'' (2008), in a joint venture with

Jermaine Dupri Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper and record producer. Raised in Atlanta, Georgia as the son of Columbia Records executive Michael Mauldin, he began his career in music at the age of nine. He discovered th ...

So So Def Recordings So So Def Recordings is an American record label based in Atlanta, Georgia, founded by producer Jermaine Dupri in 1993. Specializing in Southern hip hop, R&B, and bass music, the label has signed musical acts such as Bow Wow, Kris Kross, Xsca ...

and

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

. Despite negative critical reception, the album peaked at number 21 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and was supported by the single " Umma Do Me", which peaked at number 66 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His 2013 single, "

U.O.E.N.O. "U.O.E.N.O." (verbal shorthand for ''You Don't Even Know'', spoken in regional vernacular dialect) is a song written and performed by American rapper Rocko featuring fellow American rappers Future and Rick Ross. It was released independently on ...

" (featuring Future and

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. An influential figure in modern Hip-hop, hip hop music, Rick Ross has become known for his "Wiktionary:booming, booming" vocal perfor ...

), peaked at number 20 on the chart.

Musical career

1999–2008: Career beginnings and ''Self Made''

In 1999, Rocko began his career as a

talent agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainm ...

for the independent label, Triple A Records. After a local rapper he discovered received a contract with

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company that is a subsidiary of Comcast ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of N ...

, he left Triple A and launched the record label, Rocky Road Records, in 2003. He signed or bought out recording contracts from then-upcoming musical acts including

Young Dro D'Juan Montrel Hart (born January 15, 1979), better known by his stage name Young Dro, is an American rapper. Best known for his association with fellow Atlanta-based rapper T.I., Dro signed with his label, Grand Hustle Records, an imprint of ...

and Dem Franchise Boyz, both of whom signed with Rocky Road prior to their mainstream breakthroughs. Also in 2003, Rocko released his debut project as a recording artist: the mixtape ''N.W.A (No Wack Artist)''. He would release several follow-up mixtapes before signing with

L.A. Reid Antonio Marquis "L.A." Reid (born June 7, 1956) is an American record executive, A&R representative, and record producer who served as president and CEO of Arista Records from 2000 to 2004, as well as chairman and CEO of the Island Def Jam Mus ...

Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The l ...

in October 2006. The deal was in a joint venture with fellow Atlanta native, record producer

. He released his debut studio album, '' Self Made'' on March 18, 2008. It featured production from

Drumma Boy Christopher James Gholson (born August 11, 1983), better known by his stage name Drumma Boy (or Drummer Boy), is an American record producer and rapper. Early life Born in Memphis, Tennessee, and raised in Cordova, Tennessee, he was exposed to ...

Cool & Dre Cool & Dre are a record production and songwriting duo from North Miami, Florida, consisting of Marcello "Cool" Antonio Valenzano and Andre "Dre" Christopher Lyon. The duo were first discovered by New York rapper Fat Joe and began their career ...

, The Runners and J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, and vocal contributions from guest artists Lloyd,

Dre DRE may refer to: * ''Dre'' (album), 2010 by American rapper Soulja Boy Tell 'Em, 2010 * Dre (given name) **Dr. Dre Andre Romell Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper, record producer, recor ...

Kevin Cossom Kevin Bryant Cossom (born September 2, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Born in Philadelphia and raised in Orlando, Florida, Cossom has co-written hit songs for music industry artists including Keri Hilson (" Knock ...

as well as Monica. The album was preceded by the single " Umma Do Me", his first single to reach success on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The album was met with generally negative reviews and lukewarm commercial reception.

2010–present: Mixtape circuit

His second studio album ''One of One'' was originally slated for release on

, however Rocko ultimately parted ways with the label. He subsequently rebranded his Rocky Road label to be known as A1 Recordings (often typeset as A-1 Recordings). On March 1, 2010, he released the mixtape ''Wild Life''. As a result of the positive feedback for the mixtape, Rocko re-released it as an independent album in June of that year, adding the subtitle ''Deez Streets a Beast''. The album contained guest appearances from his A1 Recordings signee

, who performed on the tracks "9 Times Outta Ten", "Up", and "You Know". On February 9, 2011, Rocko released his mixtape ''Rocko Dinero''. In September 2011, A1 Recordings would have its first major release with Future's debut single "

Tony Montana Antonio "Tony" Montana is a fictional character and the villain protagonist of the 1983 film '' Scarface''. This character is portrayed by Al Pacino in the film and is voiced by André Sogliuzzo in the 2006 video game '' Scarface: The Worl ...

", which Rocko co-wrote. On November 24, 2011, he released the mixtape ''Gift of Gab'', the mixtape spawned the regionally successful single "Squares Out Your Circle" (featuring Future). In April 2012, Future released his debut album ''

Pluto Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of Trans-Neptunian object, bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune. It is the ninth-largest and tenth-most-massive known object to directly orbit the Su ...

'', which Rocko executive produced and co-wrote five tracks on. The album was met with critical and commercial success, likewise with Future's subsequent releases on the A1 label. On October 25, 2012, Rocko released the mixtape ''Wordplay''. On January 26, 2013, it was announced that Rocko was considering joining his old business partner

(who was previously an executive at Def Jam) on his new label

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

, as Rocko's artist Future was performing well on the label. He intimated he wasn't sure about the decision, and ultimately did not sign with the Epic. Despite Rocko remaining independent, Future would continue to release his projects with Epic and remain A1's only major signee. On February 16, 2013, he released ''Gift of Gab 2''; the mixtape spawned his second hit with the somewhat controversial single: "

" featuring

and

. The song, produced by

Childish Major Markus Alandrus Randle (born July 4, 1991) known professionally as Childish Major, is an American rapper and record producer based in Atlanta, Georgia. He was first credited with production work on American rapper Rocko's 2013 single " U.O.E.N.O ...

, peaked at number 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming his first top 40 hit. On February 16, 2013, it was announced that Rocko signed a distribution deal with

E1 Music MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch"), formerly known as Koch Records and Entertainment One (eOne) Music/Records, is an American independent record label and music management company based in New York City. It was formed in 1987 as a music div ...

for his label A1, and that he was preparing for the release of his next studio album, ''Seeing Is Believing'', effectively cancelling ''One of One''. On March 25, 2013, Rocko hinted of a possible collaboration album between him and Future. Rocko would then release the mixtape ''Wordplay 2'' the same year. On February 7, 2014, Rocko released his mixtape ''Lingo 4 Dummys''. On May 29, 2014, Rocko released an

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

(EP) entitled ''Poet'' in dedication of the passing of

Maya Angelou Maya Angelou ( ; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credi ...

. The EP, which features a

guest appearance The term guest appearance generally denotes the appearance of a guest in an artistic or pop-culture setting. The guests themselves (referred to as guest artists, featured artists, guest stars, or guest fighters, depending on context), are disting ...

from

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air (S ...

, was originally released for free online, but later added to the iTunes Store via A1 Recordings. On October 15, 2014, Rocko released his mixtape ''IGNANT''. On November 27, 2014, Rocko released his mixtape ''FOOD''. On February 20, 2015, Rocko released his mixtape ''Expect the Unexpected''. On July 2, 2015, he released his mixtape ''Real Spill''. Future would part ways with Rocko's A1 Recordings label in 2017.

Controversy

U.O.E.N.O. lyrics

In a line on Rocko's song "

", fellow rapper

raps the line, "Put molly all in her champagne/ She ain't even know it/ I took her home and I enjoyed that/ She ain't even know it." A petition containing 72,000 signatures was presented to

Reebok Reebok International Limited ( ) is an American footwear and clothing brand that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company which had bee ...

, demanding they drop Ross as a spokesman for the lyrics which appeared to condone

date rape Date rape is a form of acquaintance rape and dating violence. The two phrases are often used interchangeably, but date rape specifically refers to a rape in which there has been some sort of romantic or potentially sexual relationship between ...

. Ross has apologized for the lyrics, claiming they weren't about rape. He was dropped by Reebok on April 11, 2013. Rocko later dropped the

verse in order to get radio play.

Lawsuit

In June 2016, Hill filed a $10 million lawsuit against his A1 Recordings artist, Future. According to Hill, Future breached his contractual obligation to release 6 albums under the label. Neither artist has announced the settlement.

Other ventures

A1 Recordings

A1 Recordings, formerly known as Rocky Road Records, is an

-based record label formed in 2010 by Hill. On February 16, 2013, it was announced that A1 Recordings will be distributed by

. ;Current artist * Rocko ;Former artist *

;Releases

Discography

Studio albums * '' Self Made'' (2008)

Filmography

Films

* 2015: ''The Spot'' (as Lehgo)

Television

* 2009: '' Monica: Still Standing'' (guest stars as himself) * 2013: '' Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta'' season 2 (stars as himself) * 2013: '' T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle'' (guest stars as himself)

References

External links

Rocko
at the

Island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

website {{DEFAULTSORT:Rocko 1979 births Living people African-American businesspeople African-American male actors African-American male rappers 20th-century American male rappers American male film actors American music industry executives Place of birth missing (living people) Businesspeople from Georgia (U.S. state) Def Jam Recordings artists Male actors from Atlanta Rappers from Atlanta Southern hip-hop musicians 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American musicians