Lil Baby

Rapper Lil Baby turned a rough upbringing on the streets of Atlanta into a platform for a lucrative musical career. Born Dominique Jones on Dec. 3, 1994, in Atlanta, Georgia, he was raised by a single mother alongside two sisters and a brother. With the family living deep in poverty, Jones eventually dropped out of high school and turned to dealing drugs to make money, which led to a drug conviction and a two-year prison term. Out of this, however, Jones developed an interest in rap through friends Pierre "Pee" Thomas and Kevin "Coach K" Lee, who encouraged him to leave drug dealing behind to join their record label, Quality Control Music. Jones learned the tools of the trade with Young Thug, a local rap star and one of Jones' childhood friends. In 2017, Jones officially signed with Quality Control, taking the name Lil Baby.

Using the strong musical foundation his friends provided, Lil Baby went to work recording his first mixtapes at a rapid pace. He dropped four between April and December 2017, then released his debut album, "Harder Than Ever," the next May. It debuted at third place on the Billboard 200, an impressive showing for such a fresh artist. His peers credited his success to the meaning he infused into his lyrics. His songs often eschewed catchy but meaningless phrases in favor of telling stories that drew from his life experiences. His melodious voice and rapid lyrical delivery won over critics and fans alike.