XXXTentacion definitely made his mark at #RollingLoud3 #PandoraFF t.co/TZQNrLR2tp
XXXTentacion, born Jahseh Onfroy, is an increasingly-popular rapper from Lauderhill, FL. Most surprising about XXXTentacion’s rise in popularity is that it happened while he was in prison and without the support of a major record label. He is one of the first musicians to blow-up almost strictly via SoundCloud.
XXXTentacion has already been arrested several times and is still facing multiple felony charges including false imprisonment, domestic battery and aggravated battery of a pregnant woman.
Despite being held in prison for several months, XXXTentacion continued to put out new music and managed to land on the Billboard Top 100 chart. He recently began a 24-city U.S tour.
Here’s what you need to know about the 19-year-old rapper:
1. XXXTentacion is Still Facing Charges of Multiple Felonies
XXXTentacion mug shot
On Oct. 8, 2016, XXXtenacion was arrested on charges of false imprisonment, domestic battery and aggravated battery of a pregnant woman. He pleaded not guilty on Oct. 10. The Miami-Dade County Criminal Justice System shows that his trial hearing, which has been reset several times, is scheduled for June 26 at 9 a.m.
The full court docket on his felony cases can be read below:
XXXTentacion was also released from prison in March from a different incident. According to Spin, he pleaded no contest to home invasion and battery with a firearm. He was given a “withheld conviction” and received six years probation.
2. His Songs On SoundCloud Have Over 400 Million Plays
XXXTentacion’s first song to blow up was “Look at Me!”. The song was released in 2016 and has over 76 million plays on SoundCloud. The song entered the Billboard Top 100 in February and reached as high as 34 in April. The song currently ranks 49 on the chart.
Listen to “Look At Me!” below:
Other heavy-hitters on XXXTentacion’s SoundCloud page include “I don’t wanna do this anymore”(37.8 million), “EAST SIDE SOULJA” (25.2 million), “YuNg BrAtZ” (29.7 million) and “ILOVEITWHENTHEYRUN” (25.6 million).
XXXTentacion’s SoundCloud page has over 955 thousand followers. His most recent release, “garette’s REVENGE”, has 12 million plays in just two weeks.
3.XXXTentacion Just Started a 24-City Tour
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XXXTentacion kicked off “The Revenge Tour” on Tuesday, with fellow Members Only rappers Ski Mask The Slump God and Craig Xen. The first show on the tour, at Houston’s House of Blues, received high praise from attendees.
It seems the only hitch in the performance came when Wifisfuneral, a musician performing at the concert, was beaten up after stage-diving into the crowd. XXXTentacion briefly paused the show and asked, “who jumped him?” and said, “I’ll come see about you right now.” Wifisfuneral posted on twitter that he wasn’t too seriously injured.
https://twitter.com/wifisfuneral/status/870126887275708416/photo/1
XXXTentacion’s tour will hit 24 cities in a little over a month. Interestingly, he has a show scheduled on June 26, the same day his trial hearing is scheduled.
XXXTentacion’s recent live performance at the 2017 Rolling Loud Festival in Miami earned him solid reviews. XXL said XXXTentacion “had probably to most high-energy set of the whole event.”
4.XXXTentacion Recently Said He Wants To Do More Than Rap Music
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XXXTentacion said in an interview with XXL that he wants to be more than just a rapper:
I didn’t want to be just a rapper because if I was just a rapper, I wouldn’t be able to touch a certain crowd. I really wanted to be able to put my emotion and my energy into everybody and everything. Being just a rapper was very typical. Being an artist is more than being a singer or a multi-genre artist, I can also illustrate things or produce things or orchestrate things. I didn’t want to be put in that category because it seemed too small for what I felt like I was capable of. I always listened to every genre, so I didn’t want to be limited by the genre [of rap] because my mind was bigger than that. I love rap, I love melancholy, I love indie.
XXXTentacion showed more range with the recently-released song, “garette’s REVENGE”. The track is much more subdued than other songs he has put out before. Musically, the song is driven by an acoustic guitar and bass, and his vocal track is absent of many of the effects used on previous offerings.
Listen to “garettes REVENGE” below:
5. XXXTentacion Had A Beef With Drake
Many people, including XXXTentacion, have accused Drake of ripping off XXXTentacion’s biggest hit, “Look At Me!”, at one of his live concerts. The song in question is Drake’s “KMT”. According to Complex, Drake’s performance of the song sent XXXTentacion on a Twitter rampage against Drake. The tweets have since been deleted, but XXXTentacion addressed the feud in an interview with 103.5 The Beat.
Watch the video of the interview below:
Drake addressed the feud in an interview with DJ Semtex on OVO Sound Radio, saying, ” It’s crazy that people think that after all this time, after all I’ve been through, that I’m that type of person…to go and take that and make it my own.”
Listen to Drake’s interview below:
Fans have made mashups of the two songs to compare.
Listen to the two songs below: