UGK 4 Life is the sixth and final studio album by American hip hop duo UGK. It was released on March 31, 2009, by Jive Records. Recording sessions took place at Mad Studios in Houston, Swagger Studios in Los Angeles, Trill Cave Studios in Port Arthur, Maximedia Studios in Dallas, Chung King Studios and Legacy Recording Studios in New York, and Silent Sound Recording Studios in Atlanta. Production was handled by Cory Mo, Pimp C, Steve Below, Averexx, DJ B-Do, Mannie Fresh and Akon, with Mike Dean and Giorgio Tuinfort serving as co-producers. It features guest appearances from 8Ball & MJG, Akon, Big Gipp, B-Legit, E-40, Lil' Boosie, Raheem DeVaughn, Ronald Isley, Sleepy Brown, Snoop Dogg, Too $hort and Webbie.
Keith Farrelle Cozart, better known by his stage name Chief Keef, is an American rapper and record producer. Born and raised in Chicago's South Side, he began his recording career as a teenager and initially garnered regional attention and praise for his mixtapes in the early 2010s. Cozart is often credited with popularizing the hip hop subgenre drill for mainstream audiences, and is considered a progenitor of the genre.
Migos were an American hip hop group founded in North Atlanta, specifically Lawrenceville, Georgia, in 2008. The group was composed of rapper Quavo, his nephew Takeoff, and their mutual friend Offset. Quavo is from Athens, Georgia, Ayub Mungai and Olet Myles also while Offset and Takeoff were born and raised in nearby Lawrenceville. As a group, they were managed by Coach K, the former manager of Gucci Mane and Jeezy, and frequently collaborated with producers DJ Durel, Murda Beatz, Zaytoven, and Buddah Bless. Recognized for their contribution to trap music in the 2010s, Billboard stated that the group "influenced pop culture and the entire English language by bringing their North Atlanta roots to the mainstream".
Quavious Keyate Marshall, better known by his stage name Quavo, is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. He is best known as the frontman of the now-defunct hip hop group Migos. Formed with his nephew Takeoff and their mutual friend Offset in 2008, the group released four commercially successful studio albums before disbanding in 2023.
Dominique Armani Jones, known professionally as Lil Baby, is an American rapper. He rose to prominence following the release of his 2017 mixtapes Harder than Hard and Too Hard, the former of which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100 entry with its lead single, "My Dawg." He signed with Quality Control Music, an imprint of Motown and Capitol Records to release his debut studio album Harder Than Ever (2018), which peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and was supported by the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single "Yes Indeed". He released two additional retail projects that same year: The collaborative mixtape Drip Harder with fellow Georgia-based rapper Gunna—which saw continued success with its singles "Drip Too Hard" and "Close Friends"—and his commercial mixtape Street Gossip, which peaked at number two on the Billboard 200.
Reckless is the debut studio album by Canadian rapper Nav. It was released on May 18, 2018 by XO Records and Republic Records. The album features guest appearances from Quavo, Travis Scott, Lil Uzi Vert, and Gunna. It features production from Nav himself, Wheezy, Ben Billions, Rex Kudo, Charlie Handsome, Foreign Teck, OZ, and Turbo, among others.
Culture III is the fourth and final studio album by American hip hop group Migos. It was released on June 11, 2021, by Quality Control Music and Motown. The album features guest appearances from Drake, Cardi B, Polo G, Future, Justin Bieber, Juice Wrld, Pop Smoke, and YoungBoy Never Broke Again. It is the follow-up to their 2018 album Culture II and serves as the conclusion to their Culture trilogy. A deluxe edition was released six days later, including five additional tracks.
Kobe Vidal Crawford Jr., known professionally as NoCap, is an American rapper and singer. He signed with YoungBoy Never Broke Again's namesake record label, an imprint of Atlantic Records in 2019. His debut studio album, Mr. Crawford (2022), peaked at number eight on the Billboard 200 and saw widespread critical praise. He is noted for his use of wordplay.
Jackboys is a collaborative compilation album by American record label Cactus Jack Records, under the name Jackboys, led by American rapper and singer Travis Scott. It was released through Cactus Jack Records alongside Epic Records on December 27, 2019. The album features guest appearances from Rosalía, Lil Baby, Sheck Wes, Don Toliver, Quavo, Offset, Young Thug, and Pop Smoke. Jackboys is a hip hop collective of rappers signed to Scott's Cactus Jack imprint, including Scott himself, Sheck Wes, Don Toliver, SoFaygo, and Scott's DJ Chase B. Upon debut, Jackboys opened atop the US Billboard 200 on January 11, 2020, becoming the first number one album of the 2020s. It was Scott's third album to debut atop the chart after his third studio album, Astroworld (2018).
Pegasus is the third studio album by American rapper Trippie Redd, released on October 30, 2020. The album features guest appearances from Myiah Lynnae, Yung LB, PartyNextDoor, Chris Brown, Rich the Kid, Young Thug, Future, Lil Mosey, Quavo, Busta Rhymes, Sean Kingston, Doe Boy, Lil Wayne, HoodyBaby, and Swae Lee. The deluxe version titled Neon Shark vs Pegasus made in collaboration with Travis Barker was released on February 19, 2021, featuring Machine Gun Kelly, blackbear, Chino Moreno, Scarlxrd, and ZillaKami.
Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon is the debut studio album by American rapper Pop Smoke. It was posthumously released on July 3, 2020, by Victor Victor Worldwide and Republic Records, and a deluxe edition of the album that includes fifteen additional tracks—including remixes of three songs from the original—was released on July 20 that year, a date that would have been Pop Smoke's 21st birthday. It is a drill, trap, and R&B record.
Michael Kyle Williams, known professionally as Sheff G, is an American rapper from Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York City. He rose to fame with his 2017 single "No Suburban", which was a response to the song "Suburban" by 22Gz. Williams is widely known as one of the vanguards of the Brooklyn drill movement. On May 16, 2023, Williams was indicted with 31 other purported gang members responsible for several shooting incidents and at least one murder over a two-year span.
Tegan Joshua Anthony Chambers, known professionally as Sleepy Hallow, is a Jamaican-American rapper who specializes in Brooklyn drill. Born in Jamaica, Chambers was raised in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York City alongside frequent collaborator Sheff G.
"Deep End Freestyle" is a song by American rapper Sleepy Hallow and American singer Fousheé. It was released on April 3, 2020 by Winners Circle Entertainment, and is the lead single from his mixtape Sleepy Hallow Presents: Sleepy for President (2020). Produced by Great John, the song features a sample of "Deep End" by Fousheé. The song is the first charting song on the Billboard Hot 100 for both artists, peaking at number 80. It went viral via TikTok.
Ryan Preston Adams, known professionally as Rylo Rodriguez, is an American rapper from Mobile, Alabama. He signed with Lil Baby's record label, Glass Window Entertainment in a joint venture with Virgin Records in February 2020. He first gained recognition for his collaborations with the rapper, and released his debut studio album, G.I.H.F. in November of that year. It peaked within the top 40 of the Billboard 200, while his second album, Been One (2023) peaked within the top ten and was supported by the single "Thang for You" —his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 as a lead artist.
Trip at Knight is the fourth studio album by American rapper and singer Trippie Redd. It was released on August 20, 2021, through 1400 Entertainment and 10k Projects. The album features guest appearances from SoFaygo, Drake, Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, Ski Mask the Slump God, Polo G, Lil Durk, Babyface Ray, Sada Baby, and Icewear Vezzo; alongside late rappers Juice Wrld and XXXTentacion. Trippie Redd embarked on a tour in support for the album just days after its release. It is a spin-off to his debut studio album Life's a Trip (2018).
Steel Human is the fifth mixtape by American rapper NoCap. It was released on July 16, 2020, by Atlantic Records and Never Broke Again. It features guest appearances from DaBaby, Boosie Badazz, Lil Uzi Vert, and Jacquees. It is the follow-up to his first two solo releases, The Backend Child (2019) and The Hood Dictionary (2019), as well as the collaboration mixtape Rogerville (2019) with fellow rapper Rylo Rodriguez. The project debuted at number 31 on the US Billboard 200.
This article summarizes the events, album releases, and album release dates in hip hop music for the year 2023.
Rocket Power is the second studio album by American rapper Quavo. It was released on August 18, 2023, by Quality Control Music and Motown. The album features guest appearances from the late Takeoff, Future, Young Thug, Hunxho, and BabyDrill.
Ibrahim Muhammad Dodo, known professionally as Hunxho is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. He is signed to 300 Entertainment. Hunxho initially rose to fame with the song "Let's Get It" in 2021, which spawned a remix with fellow American rapper 21 Savage. Later that year, he released the mixtape Street Poet 2.
