BlocBoy JB

BlocBoy JB
Birth name James Baker
Born (1996-05-19) May 19, 1996[1]
Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Origin Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s) Rapper
Years active 2012–present
Labels Bloc Nation
Associated acts

James Baker (born May 19, 1996), known professionally as BlocBoy JB, is an American rapper and songwriter from Memphis, Tennessee.[2][3][4] He is best known for his song "Look Alive" featuring Drake which peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 2018.[5][6]

Early life

James Baker was born on May 19, 1996, in Memphis, Tennessee. Baker's name comes from his father, who is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence. In 2008, when Baker was 12, his father broke out of prison and travelled to Baker's home to see him for a short period of time.[7] At the age of 14, Baker became affiliated with the Grape Street Watts Crips. Although located in Los Angeles, the gang has an affiliated branch in Memphis called the Peda Roll Mafia. Baker's affiliation is mentioned throughout many of his songs, including "Rover".[8] Baker served a month in prison in 2012 for committing a home invasion, and served the rest of his sentence on house arrest. Baker has said the invasion was "sloppy", and that they performed the invasion with no masks and a BB gun.[9]

Baker began making music when he was fourteen when he moved to Raleigh in North Memphis and met Tay Keith (who later produced Look Alive), and the two began making music shortly afterwards.[10]

Music career

BlocBoy JB started putting out music on his SoundCloud page in 2012.[11] He released his first mixtape, Who Am I, in 2016. It featured the track "No Chorus Pt. 6," which reached nearly two million views on YouTube.[4] BlocBoy JB generated controversy in October 2017 after visiting a series of high schools and posting a video of himself shooting dice at Hamilton High School in Memphis, Tennessee.[12]

The next summer, he released the song "Shoot", which spawned a dance craze called the "shoot dance".[2][4][13] Another single, "Rover", followed in early 2018. The viral hits attracted the attention of Canadian rapper Drake[3][4][13] who it was speculated was going to remix "Rover"[14] though it resulted in the pair collaborating on a song titled, "Look Alive", which was released in February 2018 and debuted at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[6]

Following the release of "Look Alive", BlocBoy JB spurred rumors he would soon sign to Drake's label OVO Sound, saying "Somewhat. I'm trying to see what's my move."[15] He was also featured on Moneybagg Yo's 2 Heartless project.[16] On March 23, 2018, BlocBoy JB released "Rover 2.0", a collaboration with Atlanta rapper 21 Savage.[17] The song was BlocBoy JB's second lead song to chart on a Billboard chart, peaking at number two on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 singles. He was also featured on ASAP Rocky's "Bad Company"[18] and No Jumper's "Hard" with Tay-K.[19]

After releasing the single, "Produced by BlocBoy", he announced the mixtape Simi,[20] while also revealing the tracklist which featured Lil Pump, YG, Drake and 21 Savage.[21] BlocBoy JB was named as one of the members of XXL's "2018 Freshman Class" on June 12, 2018.[22]

BlocBoy JB is known for popularising the "shoot" dance, which was incorporated in the Fortnite video game.[23][24][25]

Discography

Mixtapes

List of mixtapes, with selected details
Title Album details
Who Am I
Grape Juice
  • Released: September 23, 2016[27]
  • Label: Bloc Nation
  • Format: Digital download
Who Am I 2
  • Released: December 28, 2016[28]
  • Label: Bloc Nation
  • Format: Digital download
Loco
  • Released: March 12, 2017[29]
  • Label: Bloc Nation
  • Format: Digital download
Who Am I 3
  • Released: June 30, 2017[30]
  • Label: Bloc Nation
  • Format: Digital download
The Purple M&M
  • Released: September 11, 2017[31]
  • Label: Bloc Nation
  • Format: Digital download
Simi
  • Released: May 4, 2018[32]
  • Label: Bloc Nation
  • Format: Digital download

Singles

As lead artist

Title Year Peak chart positions Album
US
[33]		 US
R&B/HH
[34]		 AUS
[35]		 CAN
[36]		 UK
[37]
"Rover"[38] 2018 —[lower-alpha 1]———— Non-album single
"Look Alive"
(featuring Drake)		 5324417 Simi
"Rover 2.0"
(featuring 21 Savage)		 —[lower-alpha 2]49———
"Prod by Bloc"[40] ————— Non-album single
"Let It Go"[41]
(with 88rising and Higher Brothers)		 ————— Head in the Clouds
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
List of singles as a featured artist, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
US
Bub.
[42]		 US
R&B
/HH
[43]		 CAN
[44]
"Hard"[45]
(No Jumper featuring Tay-K and BlocBoy JB)		 2018 14—[lower-alpha 3]—non-album singles
"Bad Company"[47]
(ASAP Rocky featuring BlocBoy JB)		 14768
"Slow Dance"[48]
(Brianna Perry featuring BlocBoy JB)		 ———
"Drop"[49]
(G-Eazy featuring Blac Youngsta and BlocBoy JB)		 ———
"We Bangin' Grape"[50]
(Lil One Hunnet featuring BlocBoy JB and 03 Greedo)		 ———
"Better"[51]
(Chantel Jeffries featuring BlocBoy JB and Vory)		 ———
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Guest appearances

List of non-single guest appearances, with other performing artists, showing year released and album name
Title Year Other artist(s) Album
"This is America" 2018 Childish Gambino, Young Thug, Slim Jxmmi, 21 Savage, Quavo Non-album song
"OG Beeper" ASAP Rocky Testing

Notes

  1. ↑ "Rover" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number 24 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.
  2. ↑ "Rover 2.0" did not enter the Billboard Hot 100, but peaked at number two on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.[39]
  3. ↑ "Hard" did not enter the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, but peaked at number four on the Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart.[46]

References

  1. ↑ "Bruh I'm 21 N My Birthday Is May/19/1996". Instagram. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Hussein, Wandera (February 15, 2018). "BlocBoy JB: Five Things to Know About the 'Look Alive' Memphis Rapper". Billboard. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  3. 1 2 Kameir, Rawiya (February 12, 2018). "BlocBoy JB is now in the running to become America's next top rapper". The Fader. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Seabrook III, Robby (February 16, 2018). "The Break Presents: BlocBoy JB". XXL. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  5. ↑ Trust, Gary (February 20, 2018). "Drake Tops Billboard Hot 100 With 'God's Plan' & Debuts in Top 10 as Featured on BlocBoy JB's 'Look Alive'". Billboard. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  6. 1 2 Trust, Gary (February 20, 2018). "Drake Tops Billboard Hot 100 With 'God's Plan' & Debuts in Top 10 as Featured on BlocBoy JB's 'Look Alive'". Billboard. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  7. ↑ djvlad (May 9, 2018). "BlocBoy JB on His Dad Getting 25 Years, Breaking Out of Prison and Visiting Him (Part 1)". Retrieved May 9, 2018 – via YouTube.
  8. ↑ "BlocBoy JB - Rover 2.0". Genius. Retrieved May 3, 2018.
  9. ↑ djvlad (May 11, 2018). "BlocBoy JB on Being Locked Up for Home Invasion with BB Gun. Baker had his first child in 2012 named Winter.2)". Retrieved May 11, 2018 – via YouTube.
  10. ↑ "BlocBoy JB is now in the running to become America's next top rapper". The Fader. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  11. ↑ Robertson, Darryl (February 12, 2018). "Five Things We Found Out About Memphis Rapper, BlocBoy JB". Vibe. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  12. ↑ "Rapper BlocBoy JB films dice game allegedly inside Hamilton High". WAFB. Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  13. 1 2 Pearce, Sheldon (February 9, 2018). "Tracks: BlocBoy JB - 'Look Alive' (ft. Drake)". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Drake Appears to be on the Remix of BlocBoy JB's "Rover"". Hypebeast. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Drake May Have Signed Fast-Rising Memphis Rapper Blocboy JB To OVO". Uproxx. 2018-02-12. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  16. ↑ "Moneybagg Yo's '2 Heartless' Project Features Quavo and More". XXL. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  17. ↑ "BlocBoy JB – "Rover 2.0" (Feat. 21 Savage)". Stereogum. 2018-03-23. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
  18. ↑ "A$AP Rocky & BlocBoy JB Take Aim at Their Haters on 'Bad Company': Listen". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
  19. ↑ "Tay-K and BlocBoy JB share "Hard"". The Fader. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
  20. ↑ "BlocBoy JB announces Simi release date, shares cover art". The FADER. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
  21. ↑ "Blocboy JB Taps Drake, 21 Savage, YG, Lil Pump & More For "SIMI" Tracklist". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
  22. ↑ "XXL 2018 Freshman Class Revealed". XXL. June 12, 2018. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  23. ↑ "Where did BlocBoy JB's "shoot dance" come from?". Capital Xtra. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
  24. ↑ "BlocBoy JB's "Shoot" Dance Is Now on Fortnite". XXL. May 2, 2018. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
  25. ↑ "Blocboy JB Calls Out 'Fortnite' For Co-opting 'Shoot Dance'". Complex. September 10, 2018. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
  26. ↑ "BlocBoy JB - Who Am I". Spinrilla. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  27. ↑ "BlocBoy JB - Grape Juice". Spinrilla. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  28. ↑ "BlocBoy JB - Who Am I 2". Spinrilla. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  29. ↑ "BlocBoy JB - Loco". Spinrilla. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  30. ↑ "Who Am I 3 by BlocBoy JB". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  31. ↑ "The Purple M&M by BlocBoy JB". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  32. ↑ "Simi by BlocBoy JB". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved May 2, 2018.
  33. ↑ "Drake - Chart History: Billboard Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  34. ↑ Peaks positions:
    • "Look Alive": "Drake - Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
    • "Rover 2.0": "21 Savage - Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  35. ↑ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. April 2, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2018.
  36. ↑ "Drake - Chart History: Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  37. ↑ "BLOCBOY JB FT DRAKE | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
  38. ↑ "Rover - Single by BlocBoy JB on Apple Music". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  39. ↑ "21 Savage Chart History: Bubbling Under Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  40. ↑ "Produced by Blocboy - Single by BlocBoy JB". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  41. ↑ "Let It Go - Single by 88rising, Higher Brothers & BlocBoy JB on Apple Music". iTunes. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
  42. ↑ Peaks positions:
    • "Hard": "Tay-K - Chart History: Bubbling Under Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
    • "Bad Company": "ASAP Rocky - Chart History: Bubbling Under Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  43. ↑ "A$AP Rocky - Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  44. ↑ "A$AP Rocky - Chart History: Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  45. ↑ "Hard (feat. Tay-K & BlocBoy JB) - Single by No Jumper on Apple Music". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  46. ↑ "Tay-K - Chart History: Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles". Billboard. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  47. ↑ "Bad Company (feat. BlocBoy JB) - Single by A$AP Rocky on Apple Music". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved March 28, 2018.
  48. ↑ "Slow Dance (feat. BlocBoy JB) - Single by Brianna Perry". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  49. ↑ "Drop (feat. Blac Youngsta & BlocBoy JB) - Single by G-Eazy". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  50. ↑ "We Bangin' Grape (feat. BlocBoy JB & 03 Greedo) - Single by Lil One Hunnet". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved August 15, 2018.
  51. ↑ "Better (feat. BlocBoy JB & Vory) - Single by Chantel Jeffries". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved August 15, 2018.
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