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Bryson LaShun Potts, (born November 1, 2002), known professionally as NLE Choppa (previously YNR Choppa), is an American rapper and songwriter from
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
. He gained recognition with the release of his 2019 single " Shotta Flow", which received
platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...
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 peaked within the
top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...
of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song preceded his debut
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), '' Cottonwood'', in December of that year. Potts signed with
Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...
to release his debut studio album '' Top Shotta'' (2020), which peaked within the top ten of the US ''Billboard'' 200 and was supported by the top 40 singles "
Camelot Camelot is a legendary castle and Royal court, court associated with King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described ...
" and " Walk Em Down" (featuring
Roddy Ricch Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr. (born October 22, 1998), known professionally as Roddy Ricch, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Born and raised in Compton, California, Moore rose to fame in 2018 following the release of his song "Die Young ...
). His fourth and fifth mixtapes, '' From Dark to Light'' (2020) and '' Me vs. Me'' (2022) preceded the release of his second studio album '' Cottonwood 2'' (2023), which contained his highest-charting single, " Slut Me Out" (remixed featuring
Sexyy Red Janae Nierah Wherry (born April 15, 1998), known professionally as Red, is an American rapper. She rose to prominence with the release of her 2023 single " Pound Town" (with Tay Keith); its popularity spawned the remixed sequel "Pound Town 2" ...
).


Early life

Bryson LaShun Potts was born on November 1, 2002, to an
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
father and Jamaican mother. He was raised in Southeast
Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
, in the Parkway Village area, and was also enrolled in Cordova High School where he played basketball. He began
freestyling Freestyle rap, also simply known as Freestyle, is a style of hip hop music where an artist normally improvises an unwritten verse from the head, with or without instrumental beats, in which lyrics are recited with no particular subject or structure ...
with childhood friends at the age of 15 and started taking music seriously at 16.


Career


2018–2019: Beginnings, breakthrough, record deal, and ''Cottonwood''

Potts's manager is his mother, Angela Potts, who has been managing him since he started expressing an interest in rap music career. He released his first song, "No Love Anthem", in March 2018 under the name YNR Choppa. On July 22, he released his debut
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 ...
, ''No Love the Takeover''. In December, he appeared on "No Chorus Pt''.'' 3", a cypher-style song by his Shotta Fam collective. His opening verse and his dance moves in the accompanying music video made him stand out from the group, earning him an online buzz. After the surge of popularity, he released his breakout single " Shotta Flow". The video reached 10 million views in a month. A few days after its release, ''
Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...
'' highlighted the track as its Song of the Day, praising his energetic delivery and adding that "he hits a new dance move every time the camera cuts back to him". The song entered the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in May 2019, debuting at number 96. It later peaked at number 36. The official remix, 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 a
Cole Bennett Cole Bennett (born May 14, 1996) is an American music video director and record executive. He is the founder of Lyrical Lemonade. He has most notably collaborated with Juice Wrld on music videos such as " All Girls Are the Same", " Lucid Dreams" ...
-directed music video, was released in June, shortly after the original song was certified platinum by the
RIAA 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 ...
. In February, he released the song's sequel, " Shotta Flow 2". The video received 20 million views within two months, prompting Carl Lamarre from ''Billboard'' to say that his "recent dominance has silenced any detractors". It was around this time that it was reported that Choppa had sparked a bidding war between a handful of top record labels, with bids reaching a reported $3 million. He turned these offers down, from Republic Records, Interscope Records, Caroline, however, to instead sign with the independent distribution company, UnitedMasters including Neo Lechweny, while keeping his master recordings and publishing. In March, he released a new single called "Capo", with the music video debuting on
Worldstarhiphop WorldStarHipHop is a content-aggregating video blog. Zurawik, David.Worldstarhiphop.com makes a name for itself with shocking viral videos". ''The Baltimore Sun''. March 23, 2012. Retrieved on April 22, 2012Alternate link to the same article fr ...
. Also in March, he was featured on Birdman and Juvenile's song "Dreams". In April 2019, NLE released another single called "Birdboy", produced by SGULL. In May, Choppa released a new single, "Blocc Is Hot", produced by ATL Jacob. It was made as a tribute to his favorite childhood rapper,
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 ...
. A few days later, he made his music festival debut by performing at the
Beale Street Music Festival Memphis in May International Festival is a month-long festival held in Memphis, Tennessee. The festival, which is saluting South Korea in 2025, honors a specific foreign country every year and features many events. The ''Beale Street Music Fest ...
in Memphis. Bob Mehr of
The Commercial Appeal ''The Commercial Appeal'' (also known as the ''Memphis Commercial Appeal'') is a daily newspaper of Memphis, Tennessee, and its surrounding metropolitan area. It is owned by the Gannett Company; its former owner, the E. W. Scripps Company, also ...
praised his act, saying that he "did much to seize the opportunity on the big stage in his hometown" and that "his career is likely to see plenty more memorable Memphis moments." On June 14, 2019, he released the single, "Free YoungBoy", produced by
CashMoneyAP Alex Christian Jean Petit (born May 19, 1995), known professionally as CashMoneyAP, is a French record producer and record executive. He is best known for having produced the ''Billboard'' Hot 100-top ten single " For the Night" (2020) by Pop Smo ...
. The music video has achieved over 19 million views on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
. The title of this song is a reference to rapper
YoungBoy Never Broke Again Kentrell DeSean Gaulden (born October 20, 1999), known professionally as YoungBoy Never Broke Again or NBA YoungBoy, is an American rapper. From Louisiana, United States, Gaulden released eight independent mixtapes and garnered a regional foll ...
, who was arrested for a parole violation after a shootout in Miami. This song was the first release from his own label No Love Entertainment (NLE), which he launched in partnership with
Warner Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...
. According to ''Billboard'' magazine, No Love Entertainment is slated to release new music from Potts. On September 13, 2019, he released a new single titled "
Camelot Camelot is a legendary castle and Royal court, court associated with King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described ...
". The song peaked at number 37 in the US, becoming his second Top 40 hit, following "Shotta Flow". On December 20, 2019, Potts released his debut
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 ...
titled '' Cottonwood.'' The EP, named after the area he grew up in, features the previously released singles "Side" and his breakthrough hit " Shotta Flow" with its remix, featuring Blueface. The EP also consists of a collaboration with
Meek Mill Robert Rihmeek Williams (born May 6, 1987), known professionally as Meek Mill, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he embarked on his career as a battle rapper, and later formed a short-lived rap group the Blo ...
. To accompany the release of ''Cottonwood'', a short film of the same name was released on the same day.


2020: ''Top Shotta'', ''From Dark to Light''

Potts' debut studio album, '' Top Shotta'' was initially set for release in early 2020, and was preceded by multiple singles. He appeared on
King Von Dayvon Daquan Bennett (August 9, 1994 – November 6, 2020), known professionally as King Von, was an American rapper and gangster from Chicago, Illinois, who was affiliated with the Black Disciples gang. He was considered a preeminent figure ...
's "Message" off the album ''
Levon James ''Levon James'' is the second mixtape by American rapper King Von, and the last mixtape to be released during his lifetime. It was released through Only the Family Entertainment/Empire on March 6, 2020. It is a 16-track project in an assortment ...
''. March 19, he released the album's lead single " Walk Em Down" with
Roddy Ricch Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr. (born October 22, 1998), known professionally as Roddy Ricch, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Born and raised in Compton, California, Moore rose to fame in 2018 following the release of his song "Die Young ...
. On June 12, 2020, he released "Shotta Flow 5", the fourth sequel to his 2019 single " Shotta Flow". The single " Narrow Road" featuring
Lil Baby Dominique Armani Jones (born December 3, 1994), known professionally as Lil Baby, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to prominence following the release of his 2017 mixtapes ''Harder than Hard'' and ''Too Hard'' — the for ...
released on July 30. One week later, on August 7, ''Top Shotta'' was released. On August 11, 2020, Potts was included on '' XXL''s 2020 Freshman Class. On September 5, he vowed to stop rapping about violence, stating he has more to talk about and wants to "spread positivity and wake people up". On October 15, he announced a new project titled '' From Dark to Light'', which was released on November 1, his birthday. The mix tape's cover art sees him sitting with his legs crossed in an outside setting, with butterflies around him and a rainbow in the distance; a nod to his new spiritual journey. On October 23, NLE released the music video for his song, "Narrow Road" featuring Lil Baby. The music video has over 30 million views on YouTube.


2021–present: ''Me vs. Me''

Choppa previously teased "
Shotta Flow 6 "Shotta Flow 6" is a song by American rapper NLE Choppa, released on January 28, 2022 as the seventh single from his fourth mixtape ''Me vs. Me (mixtape), Me vs. Me'', which was released concurrently. Produced by CashMoneyAP and King Fisher, it is ...
" and in February 2021, "Walk Em Down 2" with
Lil Durk Durk Derrick Banks (born October 19, 1992), known professionally as Lil Durk, is an American rapper. Regarded as a pioneering artist in the Chicago-based hip-hop subgenre drill music, he is often considered the subgenre's most commercially suc ...
through a tweet. The latter is included on his fifth mixtape, '' Me vs. Me'', which was released on January 28, 2022. It consists of 16 tracks and includes guest appearances from
Young Thug Jeffery Lamar Williams II (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper. Known for his eccentric vocal style and fashion, he is considered an influential figure in modern hip hop music, hip hop and trap music ...
,
Polo G Taurus Tremani Bartlett (born January 6, 1999), known professionally as Polo G, is an American rapper. He rose to prominence with his singles " Finer Things" and " Pop Out" (featuring Lil Tjay). His debut album '' Die a Legend'' (2019) peaked a ...
,
G Herbo Herbert Randall Wright III (born October 8, 1995), better known by his stage name G Herbo (formerly Lil Herb), is an American rapper. He signed with the Chicago-based record label Machine Entertainment Group in 2011, at the age of 16. His debut ...
, and
Moneybagg Yo DeMario DeWayne White Jr. (born September 22, 1991), known professionally as Moneybagg Yo, is an American rapper known for his melodic trap and Southern hip hop music style. White signed with fellow Memphis rapper Yo Gotti's record label, ...
. "Shotta Flow 6" was released on January 28, 2022, with an accompanying music video. It is the seventh single from ''Me Vs. Me'', and is the sixth installment in the " Shotta Flow" series. In November of that year, he was featured on rapper Lambo40e's single "Self Esteem". He released the single " Shotta Flow 7" in December 2023. In April 2025, Choppa released a children's book ''Cricket Stop Cricking''. He released the book with the aim of promoting literacy in children.


Musical style

Potts is noted for his "animated vocals" and energetic rapping and aggressive tones, which he notably employed on his breakout single, " Shotta Flow". His sound has also been described as "melodic", albeit "heavy-hitting". Jessica McKinney of ''Complex'' magazine stated he usually has a "wild and rambunctious" delivery in his verses. As a child, he listened to
UGK UGK (short for Underground Kingz) was an American hip-hop duo from Port Arthur, Texas, formed in 1987, by Mitchell "Big Mitch" Queen who would eventually leave the group to pursue a football career and Chad "Pimp C" Butler with Bernard "Bun B" ...
and
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 ...
, however he recalls listening "to a lot of unreleased music all around the city" of Memphis.


Personal life

On June 20, 2020, Potts fathered his first child. He said, "I knew I needed to change and be a better person for my daughter". In August 2020, Potts launched a YouTube channel called "Awakened Choppa", where he documented his
holistic Holism is the interdisciplinary idea that systems possess properties as wholes apart from the properties of their component parts. Julian Tudor Hart (2010''The Political Economy of Health Care''pp.106, 258 The aphorism "The whole is greater than t ...
and healthier lifestyle, which included
veganism Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a vega ...
and gardening. During an unspecified time, Potts served time at a
juvenile detention center In criminal justice systems, a youth detention center, known as a juvenile detention center (JDC),Stahl, Dean, Karen Kerchelich, and Ralph De Sola. ''Abbreviations Dictionary''. CRC Press, 20011202. Retrieved 23 August 2010. , . juvenile det ...
, and said his time there motivated him to improve his behavior. In an episode of his YouTube series ''The Rise of NLE Choppa'', he said being in jail helped him and was an "eye-opener". On March 29, 2021, Potts was arrested for burglary, drug and weapon charges. He released a freestyle called "First Day Out" over the viral
SpotemGottem Nehemiah Lamar Harden (born October 19, 2001), known professionally as SpotemGottem, is an American rapper from Jacksonville, Florida. He is best known for his 2020 single "Beat Box (SpotemGottem song), Beat Box", which peaked at number 12 on the ...
's " Beat Box" beat. On March 6, 2022, he announced that he and his then-girlfriend, Marissa Da'Nae, had lost their unborn son due to a miscarriage. On August 16, 2023, they welcomed Potts' second child and Da'Nae's first child.


Discography

Studio albums * '' Top Shotta'' (2020) * '' Cottonwood 2'' (2023)


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Choppa, NLE 2002 births Living people American rappers of Jamaican descent African-American male rappers 21st-century American male rappers 21st-century American rappers Crips Hardcore hip-hop artists Warner Records artists Southern hip-hop musicians 21st-century African-American male singers Singers from Memphis, Tennessee American child rappers Rappers from Memphis, Tennessee Songwriters from Tennessee American trap musicians Gangsta rappers YouTubers from Tennessee