About
Young Thug is the stage name of Atlanta trap rapper Jeffrey Lamar Williams known for his eccentric style of rapping and high pitched slurred voice[1], who rose to prominence with his mixtape 1017 Thug, the single following, titled Danny Glover, his odd lyrics and internet personality, as well as his piece in the rap supergroup Rich Gang.
Online History
In 2011-2012 Young Thug released his Came From Nothing mixtape series. The series caught the eye of rapper and record label owner, Gucci Mane, who signed him to his 1017 Brick Squad Label. In his time with the label, he released a mixtape titles 1017 Thug, which received praise from critics, including a spot in Pitchfork’s Honorable Mentions[8], and Complex Magazines 100 best albums of the year[9]. Other music sites that wrote it include Rolling Stones[10] and The Guardian. [11]
In 2013, Young Thug released a song titled Danny Glover. The song was acclaimed by fans of his music, receiving 4,000,000 views on YouTube, as well as artists in the music industry, receiving remixes by rappers Waka Flocka Flame and Nicki Minaj among others.
Lifestyle
After a series of collaborations with Birdman’s label (which Young Thug signed a management deal with, not a record deal), Young Thug appeared on the first single of the second Rich Gang album “Rich Gang 2” titled “Lifestyle”. The song received 166,000,000 views on YouTube. The song was well met by critics, being featured on a number of year end lists. However, the song received negative attention by people on the internet, citing it’s unintelligible and poorly written lyrics.
Smoking Penises
On December 22nd, 2011, as well as January 14th, 2012, Young Thug posted two tweets in which he mentions “smoking penises” (shown below), along with a no homo in the beginning of the 2nd tweet. The tweets have caused fans of Young Thug to theorize whether he is homosexual[3], as well as becoming a common joke with the rapper.
Smokin penises!!!!
— Young Thug ひ (@youngthug) January 14, 2012
No homo we smokin penises!!!!
— Young Thug ひ (@youngthug) December 22, 2011
According to Urban Dictionary“Penis Smoke” refers to "Crack pipe smoking. Smoke from a “glass dick”"[4]. On January 16, 2015 a similar line appeared on the leaked song Friend Of Scotty that goes “No homo, but my blunt look like a dick”[5].
On April 13, 2015 YouTube channel FILNOBEP made a video titled “Young Thug Disses Lil Wayne + Rich Homie Quan Ain’t Gay” (shown below) playing a parody on Young Thug’s questionably homosexual lyrics and mentions the line
The song received over 700,000 views. An alternate version of the video received over 25,000 views.
Carter 6/Barter 6 controversy
On April 7th, 2015, Young Thug revealed the release date and artwork of his new album Carter VI a title that pays homage to Lil Wayne’s Tha Carter series[12]. However, Lil Wayne and his daughter felt disrespected that the name of the series was taken without Wayne’s permission[6]. Young Thug , later changed the title of the album to Barter 6, using the Blood gang style of replacing words starting with C, and replace it with the letter B.
Personal History
In July of 2015, he was arrested twice in 24 hours, once for threatening to kill a mall officer[13], and later for drug and gun charges after a raid in his home[14].
Search Interest
External References
[1]Fact Mag – the 20 best mixtapes of 2013
[2]Wikipedia – Gucci Mane
[3]Gossip On This – Young Thug Enjoys Smoking Penises
[4]Urban Dictionary – Penis Smoke
[5]Genius – No homo, but my blunt look like a dick
[6]Complex – Young Thug Announces ‘Carter 6’ Release Date, Unveils Artwork
[7]BillBoard – Lil Wayne & Young Thug: A Timeline of Their Friendship Turned Beef
[8]Pitchfork – Albums of the Year – Honorable Mention
[9]Complex – The 50 Best Albums of 2013
[10]Rolling Stones – Best Mixtapes of 2013
[11]The Guardian – The five best mixtapes of 2013
[12]Radio – Thanks to Lil Wayne, Young Thug’s New Album Is No Longer Called ‘Carter VI’
[13]BallerStatus – Young Thug Arrested For Threatening To Kill Mall Cop
[14]BallerStatus – Young Thug Hit With Felony Drug, Gun Charges