Every genre he touches charts, and the only institution that won't co-sign it is the Grammys.
At a glance
- Known for
- Genre-crossing hitmaker with 9 diamond-certified singles and 6 studio albums
- Before fame
- Learned guitar from Guitar Hero, got his stage name from a rap name generator
- Off-screen
- Owns a Utah estate with an underground doomsday bunker built for 30
Rise to Fame
A joke about his new braids started everything. He said he felt like 'White Iverson' and laid down the track in a friend's bedroom using FL Studio over a beat he found on YouTube.
Wiz Khalifa and Mac Miller co-signed it after it hit SoundCloud in February 2015, the kind of endorsements that turn bedroom uploads into Republic Records meetings. Stoney then broke Thriller's 34-year Billboard record for most weeks in the R&B/Hip-Hop top 10, logging 77 to Michael Jackson's 76. Not bad for a kid who got his stage name from an internet rap name generator.
In the Spotlight
'Sunflower' with Swae Lee became the first song in RIAA history to go double-diamond. He has nine diamond-certified singles, second only to Drake. That kind of dominance usually comes with a shelf full of trophies, but the Grammys refuse to co-sign. Eight nods at a single ceremony, zero wins. 18 career nominations and still nothing.
The country pivot wasn't a stunt. F-1 Trillion debuted at #1 in six countries. 'I Had Some Help' with Morgan Wallen became only the second song ever to top both Country Airplay and Pop Airplay, the kind of crossover stat that makes Nashville nervous. He walked away with his first CMA Award. The only category he can't crack is the one that votes on taste.
Side Notes
The face tattoos didn't come from bravado. He's said they come from insecurity about his appearance, that he puts 'something cool' on his face so he can look in the mirror and tell himself 'you look cool, kid.' He has 'always tired' inked under his eyes and his daughter's initials on his forehead.
He bought a 13,000-square-foot estate in Cottonwood Heights, Utah for $3.09 million, not LA, not Nashville. A canyon with 6.75 acres and an underground bunker built for 30 people, which says more about his headspace than any interview. The public persona runs on chaotic energy. The private one runs on damage control.