ASAP Rocky life and biography

Rakim Mayers, better known by his stage name ASAP Rocky (often stylized A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper and director. ASAP Rocky gained recognition among the hip hop community in 2011 after the release of his 2010 mixtape Deep Purple. In 2011 he followed up with the release of LiveLoveA$AP.

Rocky start rapping at age of 8. Born in the crime-infested Harlem neighborhood, Rocky found himself getting caught up in clandestine street activities. He saw his father go to jail at 12 for dealing. The next year, his older brother was murdered near his apartment in Harlem. Rocky spent a good chunk of his childhood camping out in shelters with his single mother.
Early Rap Career:

With his father and older brother gone, Rocky turned elsewhere for inspiration: hip-hop. He started experimenting with rhymes at 8 but didn't start rapping seriously until when he was around 17. He grew up on a steady diet of UGK, Devin the Dude, the Diplomats, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, among others.

Influenced by the Southern-style swagger of UGK and the rhymes of his hometown heroes the Diplomats, ASAP Rocky gave up slinging drugs in Harlem and moved to Elmwood Park, New Jersey, where he started rapping. By the time he had completed his GED, the self-proclaimed hood outcast had already gained comparisons to Wiz Khalifa and was being championed by Fader magazine, Stereogum, and rap superstar Drake, due to the Internet-leaked singles “Peso” and “Trilla.” In 2011, just after he turned 22, ASAP Rocky released the Deep Purple mixtape and followed it months later with the digital release of his debut album Live Love A$AP.

After signing a reported large deal with Sony, the album was re-released in February of 2012. LiveLoveA$AP made several year-end lists and earned Rocky a BBC Sound of 2012 nomination. Rocky's stock rose even higher after Drake publicly praised him and added him to his Club Paradise tour.

He once stated: "I'm going to be honest with you-- I used to be homophobic, but that's f~cked up. I had to look in the mirror and say, "All the designers I'm wearing are gay." I hear stories about all these industry motherf~~~~~s who are gay, and I don't know if it's true or not, but that sh!t don't matter. It's so immature."

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