Osiris Jahkail Williams (born September 7, 1998), known professionally as YK Osiris, is an American singer and rapper. He is best known for his 2019 single " Worth It," which peaked within the top 50 of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and 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). The song preceded the release of his debut studio album, ''

The Golden Child ''The Golden Child'' is a 1986 American dark fantasy action comedy film directed by Michael Ritchie. The film stars Eddie Murphy as Chandler Jarrell, a Los Angeles social worker who is informed that he is " The Chosen One", and is destined to ...

'' in October of that year, which was met with lukewarm critical and commercial response. The year prior, he first gained popularity from his 2018 song "Valentine," which received platinum certification by the RIAA and led him to sign with

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 ...

. He was dropped from the label in 2022.

Life and career

Williams was born in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

. He began creating music at a young age. Williams first uploaded songs under his birth name, posting his song "Fake Love" in 2017 before using the moniker "YK Osiris" (initialism for Young King Osiris) for future productions. In 2018, he signed a recording contract with

, stemming from the virality of his song "Valentine". In the following year, he released a follow up single " Worth It", which became his most successful single, and remains as his only ''Billboard'' Hot 100 entry as a lead artist to date. In October 2019, he released his debut studio album, ''The Golden Child'', under Def Jam Recordings; in December 2022, he was released from the label. The same year, he made his second entry on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for his performance on

DaBaby Jonathan Lyndale Kirk (born December 22, 1991), known professionally as DaBaby (formerly Baby Jesus), is an American rapper. After releasing several mixtapes between 2014 and 2018, he signed with Interscope Records in January 2019 in a joint ...

's song "Gospel"—peaking at number 55. In July 2023, he released a single titled "Dear Fans". In 2024, YK Osiris signed with Drummer Records, and released the single "Time Goes By" in February of that year.

Personal life

On August 22, 2018, Williams's tour bus was shot at as it traveled along

Interstate 64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at Interstate 70, I-70, U.S. Route 40 (US 40), and U.S. Route 61, US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern ter ...

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. Williams was not harmed, but four others inside the bus were shot and wounded. He documented the shooting on social media, including a video filmed inside

Barnes-Jewish Hospital Barnes-Jewish Hospital is the largest hospital in the U.S. state of Missouri. Located in the Central West End, St. Louis, Central West End neighborhood of St. Louis, it is the adult teaching hospital for Washington University School of Medicin ...

, where he said: "My car got shot at twenty times." In November 2019, Williams was arrested in

Fulton County, Georgia Fulton County is a county in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,066,710, making it the state's most populous county. Its county seat and most ...

for aggravated assault after allegedly choking and biting his girlfriend. In the summer of 2023, Williams stirred online controversy after a clip leaked of him attempting to kiss rapper

Sukihana Destiny Lanette Henderson (born November 15, 1991), better known by her stage name Sukihana, is an American reality television personality, magician and rapper who rose to prominence as a cast member on the VH1 reality series '' Love & Hip Hop ...

, while taping a basketball game, provided by

Revolt Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

, a digital cable network founded by

Sean "Diddy" Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, Combs worked as a ...

. After he gained backlash for what users assumed was attempted sexual assault, he apologized to his fans and Sukihana, who later forgave the artist.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Other charted songs

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osiris, YK 1998 births Living people 21st-century African-American male singers 21st-century American male singers African-American male rappers 21st-century American male rappers African-American male singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters American hip-hop singers American contemporary R&B singers Singers from Jacksonville, Florida Pop rappers Rappers from Florida Singer-songwriters from Florida