Lil iROCC Williams

Last updated
Lil iROCC Williams
Birth nameJustin Williams
Born (1990-03-03) March 3, 1990 (age 33)
New Orleans, Louisiana
Origin Atlanta, Georgia
Genres Christian rap, Gospel [1]
Occupation(s) Rapper, actor
Years active2001-present
LabelsJusRoCc, ForeFront Records, Authentic Music

Justin Williams (born March 3, 1990) is an American rapper and actor. Williams began his career using the stage name Lil iROCC Williams, but eventually dropped the "Lil". His name is often stylized multiple ways, including Irocc, [2] iROCC, [3] irocc, [4] and iroCc. [5]

Contents

Williams is a Christian, [3] which is heavily reflected in his lyrics. His moniker, which is inspired by Proverbs 3:5, [3] stands for IRely On Christ Completely. [2] [4]

Early life (1990–2001)

Williams was born in New Orleans, Louisiana to a father and a mother, Treiva, [6] but the family moved to Atlanta when he was still a young child. At the age of three, Williams began modeling and appearing in TV spots. [3] In 1997, Williams' mother was diagnosed with cancer; [3] during her treatment, William's mother and father converted to Christianity, which led Williams to follow suit. Williams showed an interest in rapping at the age of ten, while his father was working to develop local artists to showcase to major record labels. [4]

Williams' first live performance came in 2001, after his parents entered him in a local talent contest sponsored by an Atlanta R&B radio station. [4] Williams was chosen as one of 15 finalists, and subsequently won the grand prize.

Lil iROCC Williams (2002-2003)

In 2003, Williams was signed to major Christian record label ForeFront Records. On June 25, 2003, [3] [6] at the age of 13, Williams released his debut, self-titled album, Lil iROCC Williams. The album was met with great success, charting on a number of Billboard charts, [7] and earning Williams nominations at both the 2004 Dove Awards and the 2004 Stellar Awards. [3] [8] The release featured guest appearances from a number of big name Christian artists, including tobyMac, Canton Jones, and rap duo GRITS. In reviews of the album, Williams was compared to secular musicians, including Lil Wayne, Lil' Romeo and Lil' Bow Wow. [9]

Continued Output, Name Change and Acting (2004-2007)

After the release of his first album, Williams was released from ForeFront Records by label parent EMI. In 2004, Williams released an EP, iROCC, and a full-length album, The Sequel, under his own music label, Authentic Music. Distribution for both releases was handled by Whitaker House Publishing's musical imprint Authority Music. [6] During this time, Williams also took a break from music, and worked toward finishing his high school education.

The Sequel earned Williams two award nominations at 2006 Stellar Awards. [10] Williams won both awards, for Rap/Hip Hop Gospel CD of the Year and Children's Performance of the Year. That same year, Williams dropped the "Lil" from his name, in an attempt to reflect a maturation in his music. Under his shortened moniker "iROCC Williams", he released a second EP, Mo' Heat 4 Da' Streets, online. [11] Once again, the EP was distributed by Authority Music. [11]

In 2007, Williams was featured in his first acting role, playing Reggie "Corn" Hackett in Christmas...Who Needs It?, a direct-to-DVD film written, directed and produced by gospel singer Fred Hammond. The film was released on December 21, 2007. [6]

Born A King and Current Activities (2007-Present)

In September 2007, Williams announced his latest project, a new album titled Born A King. [6] The album was released on his new record label, JusRoCc Entertainment, on September 16, 2008. The album was distributed nationally by Central South Distribution. [12]

Williams has continued acting, appearing as Chris Hutchinson in Life 101: Angel's Secret, a 2009 direct-to-DVD film, and as Omar in Blessed & Cursed, a 2010 direct-to-DVD film starring gospel singer Deitrick Haddon.

In 2010, it was announced that Williams would star in the 10-part B.E.T. webseries 8 Days a Week, [2] based on the book series The Come Up by Lyah Beth LeFlore. The series premiered August 24, 2011. Williams plays Blue Reynolds, an amateur rapper struggling to make a name for himself in the music industry.

Discography

Albums

YearTitleLabelChart Positions
US Gospel US Christ US Heat
2003Lil iROCC Williams ForeFront Records 262746
2004The SequelAuthentic Music———
2008Born A KingJusRoCc Entertainment———

EPs

Filmography

YearFilmRoleNotes
2007Christmas...Who Needs It?Reggie "Corn" HackettDirect-to-DVD film
City GirlsJefferson JenkinsTV movie
2009Life 101: Angel's SecretChris HutchinsonDirect-to-DVD film
2010Blessed & CursedOmar
20118 Days A WeekBlue ReynoldsMain star, 10 episodes

Related Research Articles

Christian hip hop is a cross-genre of contemporary Christian music and hip hop music. It emerged from urban contemporary music and Christian media in the United States during the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirk Franklin</span> American choir director and singer

Kirk Dewayne Franklin is an American songwriter, choir director, gospel singer, and rapper. He is best known for leading urban contemporary gospel ensembles such as The Family, God's Property, and One Nation Crew (1NC) among many others. He has won numerous awards, including 19 Grammy Awards. Variety dubbed Franklin as a "Reigning King of Urban Gospel", and is one of the inaugural inductees into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TobyMac</span> American Christian rapper and singer

Toby McKeehan, better known by his stage name TobyMac, is an American contemporary Christian music singer, rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He was first known for being a member of the Christian rap and rock trio DC Talk, staying with them from 1987 until they went on hiatus in 2000. He has since continued a successful solo career with the release of eight studio albums: Momentum (2001), Welcome to Diverse City (2004), Portable Sounds (2007), Tonight (2010), Eye on It (2012), This Is Not a Test (2015), The Elements (2018), and Life After Death (2022) as well as five remixed albums: Re:Mix Momentum (2003), Renovating Diverse City (2005), Dubbed and Freq'd: A Remix Project (2012), Eye'm All Mixed Up (2014) and The St. Nemele Collab Sessions (2019). He also has two full-length Christmas albums: Christmas in Diverse City (2011) and Light Of Christmas (2017). He became the third Christian artist to have a No. 1 debut on Billboard 200 chart with Eye on It.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jedi Mind Tricks</span> American hip hop group

Jedi Mind Tricks (JMT) are an American underground hip hop group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, founded in 1996 by two high school friends, rapper Vinnie Paz and producer Stoupe the Enemy of Mankind. In 1999, rapper Jus Allah joined the group to record their second studio album, Violent by Design. Jus left the group shortly after, but returned in late 2006 and began working on the sixth studio album, A History of Violence. In 2011 Stoupe left the group because "his heart wasn't in making JMT records anymore". In 2013, Jus split from the group indefinitely, and Stoupe returned in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ForeFront Records</span> American Christian record label

ForeFront Records is a contemporary Christian music and Christian rock record label founded in 1987 by Dan R. Brock, Eddie DeGarmo, Dana Key, and Ron W. Griffin. It was purchased by EMI in 1996 from Dan R. Brock and Eddie DeGarmo, and is a division of Universal Music Group under Capitol Christian Music Group.

Dorinda Grace Clark-Cole is an American Grammy Award-winning gospel singer, songwriter, musician, talk show host, and evangelist. Clark–Cole is best known as a member of family vocal group The Clark Sisters and as a daughter of pioneering choral director Mattie Moss Clark. As a member of The Clark Sisters, Clark–Cole has won two Grammy Awards. She is known to the music world as the "Rose of Gospel Music".

Anthony Charles Williams II, better known by his stage name B. Slade, formerly known under the gospel moniker Tonéx, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, rapper, dancer, producer, and activist from San Diego, CA. He has gone by various names and aliases, but his primary stage name of choice had for years been "Tonéx". In 2010, he began using the stage name B.Slade in order to rebrand himself.

Rob Wilson, better known by his stage name Fresh I.E., is a Christian rap artist from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

Rene Francisco Sotomayor, better known by the stage name T-Bone, is a Christian rapper. His father was Nicaraguan and his mother is Salvadoran. His name came from being called 'Bones' as a youngster because he was very skinny. The 'T' was "added to give the name a little slang edge."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kurt Carr</span> Musical artist

Kurt Carr is an American gospel music composer and performer. While living in the city of Hartford, Connecticut, he served as Minister of Music at The First Baptist Church of Hartford located at the time on Greenfield Street. He is currently the Praise and Worship leader at The Fountain Of Praise in Houston, TX.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Da' T.R.U.T.H.</span> American rapper

Emanuel Lee Lambert, Jr. is a Christian rapper who goes by the stage name Da' T.R.U.T.H.

Canton Dorrelle Jones is an American Christian musician and Christian hip-hop artist.

<i>Lose Control</i> (album) 1992 studio album by Silk

Lose Control is the debut album by Silk. The album went to number-one on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and includes the hit single "Freak Me", which peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was covered in 1998 by British band Another Level. Lose Control was certified double platinum by the RIAA in 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stellar Awards</span> Award for achievements in gospel music

A Stellar Award is an award presented by SAGMA to recognize achievements in the gospel music industry. The annual presentation ceremony features performances by prominent gospel artists, and the presentation of those awards that have a more popular interest. The Stellars are the first of the Big Two major gospel music awards held annually.

Mark Julian Felder, more commonly known under simply Bizzle, is an American Christian hip hop recording artist and entrepreneur.

Ted Winn is a gospel recording artist and songwriter who first gained recognition as half of the award-winning Ted & Sheri gospel duo, with Sheri Jones-Moffett best known for their hits "Come Ye Disconsolate" and "Celebrate". Since 2009, Winn has been a popular solo artist with chart songs such as "The Lifter" and "God Believes in You" to his credit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emcee N.I.C.E.</span> American Christian hip-hop artist

Aulsondro "Novelist" Hamilton, better known by his stage name Emcee N.I.C.E., is an American Christian hip hop recording artist, musician and author. He was born in Los Angeles, California and is of Puerto Rican descent, but was raised in El Paso, Texas and Topeka, Kansas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antwaun Stanley</span> American singer-songwriter

Antwaun Stanley is an American R&B singer and songwriter based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Lucinda Moore is an American urban contemporary gospel, traditional black gospel, and gospel music recording artist and musician. She started her music career in 1989, and her first studio album, Lucinda Moore, was released by Tyscot Records in 2006. Her second album, Blessed, Broken & Given, was released in 2010, by them. These albums both achieved placements on the Billboard magazine charts.

Marques Adams, who goes by the stage name Sevin, is an American Christian hip hop rapper who has officially retired from music in September 2018. He has released 20 studio albums: All or None, Evin Angelz Kry (2004), Holy Mictramony, Feel me..., Father Forgive Me (2005), Sevin presentz : Hog Life : The LP, Work of Art : The R&B EP (2007), B 4 I Wake (2007), We Die (2007), Str8 frum tha Dragonz Mouth (2008), HOG MOB : Tha LP (2008), Faith, Love & Lust (2009), " Unreleased aka Rezin" (2009-10?), Finally Home (2010), "Finally Home Vol. 2" (2011), Purple Reign (2011), Commissary (2013), Pray 4 My Hood (2015), "I'll Wait" (2015), Purple Heart (2016), "Surrender" (2017), "Rather Die Than Deny" (2018), "Tha Mob Chronicles " (2018), and his final album "4eva Mobn" (2018). The album Commissary was his breakthrough release upon the Billboard magazine charts. His four mixtapes were Nine 1 Sikk Mixtape volume 2 : City Of Kingz (2006) and 9 1 Sikk Mixtape volume 3 : Hunterz Moon (2007) Nine 1 Sikk Mixtape volume 4 : kakoon. He also released a greatest hits album, Street Legal (2006).

References

  1. ↑ "Lil iROCC Williams Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More". AllMusic .
  2. 1 2 3 "Justin "Irocc" Williams". BET .
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Lil iROCC Williams - Artist Profile". christianmusic.about.com. Archived from the original on 2005-09-18.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "One Cubed - Band Bios - Lil irocc Williams". www.1cubed.com. Archived from the original on 2005-04-06.
  5. ↑ "CD Baby Music Store".
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "The Holy Hip Hop DataBASE - the ultimate online Christian Hiphop resource".
  7. ↑ "Lil iROCC Williams - Lil iROCC Williams | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic .
  8. ↑ http://www.gospelflava.com/stellar/stellarresults-2004.html
  9. ↑ "Lil' IROCC Williams - a Review of the Phantom Tollbooth".
  10. ↑ http://www.gospelflava.com/stellar/stellarresults-2006.html
  11. 1 2 "CD Baby Music Store".
  12. ↑ "IroCc Williams is Back with a New Album 'Born a King': On Jus' ROCC Entertainment | Gospel Music Bites". Archived from the original on 2011-10-07. Retrieved 2011-07-16.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.