Joey Bada$$ HHV Records 1 Items

In the footsteps of the 90s giants

When Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott was born in Brooklyn in 1995, the golden era of hip hop was just coming to an end, and when the boy with West Indian parents discovered music for himself, there was already a completely different climate in the mainstream of the genre. Jo didn‘t care about that, though: following in the footsteps of his idols Nas and Tupac, he created his own style of 90s influences under the name JayOhVee before founding the crew Pro Era with friends and recording tracks back to back with CJ Fly, Capital Steez and many other members. At a time when labels suddenly had the opportunity to discover new artists via the Internet, as in the case of Justin Bieber, a freestyle video under the name Joey Bada$$ went viral on YouTube and attracted the attention of Cinematic Music Group, which took the whole Pro Era crew on board in 2012. There, in the same year, Joey released his first mixtape 1999: with forward flow and a handful of reclined-jazzy boom-bap beats, descended from the likes of MF DOOM and J Dilla, the rapper proved his potential as a newcomer and could rightfully be compared to Mac Miller in this era of yesterday-meets-today.

Three million dollars or nothing

The latter then even invited Joey for a guest part on his new Macadelic mixtape, moreover he let him open for a show in Manhattan before the rapper joined none other than Juicy J on tour together with Pro Era. The hype built and was soon shaken by tragedy when his crew member and close ally Capital Steez took his own life in late 2012. This finally made Joey a whole notch more serious, and it’s not just on tracks like #longlivesteelo from his mixtape Summer Knights, produced the following year, that the nostalgic artist commemorated his old friend. The mixtape also showed his continuing 90s sensibility, and despite an offer from Jay-Zs label Roc Nation, the rapper wanted to remain independent: according to him, it would take three million dollars in advance for him to reconsider – it’s not for nothing that the rapper has two dollar signs in his name. He delivered his debut album, B4.DA.$$, in 2015, when he was just 20 years old, and it made the top five of the Billboard 200. Now, he presented what fans had already heard on his tour with Run The Jewels, Vince Staples and more on an hour-long record that even unpacked an almost forgotten J Dilla beat alongside features from ScHoolboy Q and J. Cole.

At the forefront of a new hip hop current

Now, along with that, came acting roles. “It’s been my dream to act since I was in like eighth grade,” says the young visionary. In 2016, he made his debut in the series Mr. Robot, and also landed his biggest solo success to date with his single Devastated – the rapper received a gold record. He delivered the album to go with it in 2017 with ALL AMERIKKKAN BADA$$ and now made a clear political statement when he revealed his mission: “I personally feel like I was put here on this Earth not only to inspire, but to wake people up.” Systemic racism, police violence, but also hope found their place in Joey’s thematic range. With 2000, an album recorded in 2022, he again showed himself hungry for more while reflecting on past hurdles overcome. “You niggas thought I was finished? I’m offended,” he raps on the new record, and it’s clear that there’s still a lot to come – the New Yorker is only 27, after all. His love for boom-bap now mixes with a modern aspiration, and it doesn’t even seem megalomaniacal when he classifies himself in his lyrics as the leader of a new current – a new era of hip hop, appreciating the past and expecting the new, has been ushered in.