The last decade was one for experimentation in rap music. It birthed the idea of Soundcloud rappers, trap music, and redefined what we thought rap could be. While old-school rap was almost exclusively focused on money, cars, the streets, and women, modern rap lyrics can talk about anything the artist wants.

Trippie Redd is a good example of this. If you read his lyrics without ever hearing them spoken, they may remind you more of emo-pop or alternative rock than classic rap. It’s his delivery that makes them rap, but as a fan, you already know that.

From Canton to Atlanta

Trippie, who was born Michael Lamar White the Fourth, is just hitting his stride in his 20’s, though he’s been making music since his mid-teens. He was lucky enough (and talented enough) to get famous on the internet with his early work, and moved to Atlanta to be closer to the music business.

It was there that he put out the album A Love Letter to You, which managed to chart, though he hadn’t yet signed to a label. Encouraged by the success of that first album, he quickly produced the sequel, Love Letter to You, too, in late 2017. That album was the precursor to his most famous EP, which he called Angels and Demons.

Life’s a Trip

Once he had those three albums under his belt, he started gaining interest from Atlanta-based label Strainge Entertainment (owned by Universal). They worked with him to put out his first major-label debut album, Life’s a Trip, in 2018. He followed it up just a year later with the album, whose title is an hommage to XXXTenacion, who was murdered the year before.

Trippie Redd’s career is has been just that – trippy. From the visual intensity of his album covers to the emotionality of his lyrics, it’s easy to see why he seems to get hundreds of new fans every day. And whether you’re a newer fan or you’ve been there since the beginning, you don’t want to miss out on seeing him live.