Tyga Biography

Tyga is an American rapper who had a major label debut with his second LP Careless World: Rise of the Last King.

Early Life

Micheal Ray Stevenson was born on November 19, 1989, in Compton, California. Cousin of rapper Travis McCoy, he grew up listening to rappers like Fabolous, Lil Wayne, and Eminem.

Career Beginnings

He recorded a mixtape and started promoting it on the streets. His cousin, Travis soon became an MTV superstar as a result of the hit Billionaire. Remembering that his cousin had dreams of becoming a rapper, Travis signed Tyga to his own record label, Bad Squad. Tyga was featured on Fall Out Boy’s remix Arms Race, joined by Kanye West, Paul Wall, Skinhead Rob, Lupe Fiasco, and Lil Wayne. The track was a success and he made his TV debut, performing the song on MTV’s Video Music Awards in 2007. After that and a collaboration with Lil’ Wayne, Tyga decided to focus on his solo career. He released his first debut single with Coconut Juice. As the track was rising on the club charts, he started working on his debut LP. No Introduction was revealed in 2008.

Solo Success

After 5 years, he issued a second LP Careless World, full of guest appearances from giants like The Game, Snoop Dogg, and Drake. His first top 10 charted album was Hotel California made with Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, Rick Ross, and 2 Chainz. Deuces and Loyal both featured by Chris Brown were single hits. This success collaboration was followed by a 2015 album together called Fan of a Fan: The Album. The same year, Tyga issued an album The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty and a mixtape Fuk What They Talkin Bout. 

Photo credit: Billboard