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Young Dro

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Young Dro
Birth nameD'Juan Montrel Hart
Also known asDro, 3kazy
Born (1979-01-15) January 15, 1979 (age 45)[1]
OriginBankhead, Georgia, United States
GenresHip hop
OccupationRapper
Years active1999–present
LabelsGrand Hustle, E1 Music (current)
Atlantic, Tight 2 Def (former)
Websiteyoung-dro.com

D'Juan Montrel Hart (born January 15, 1979), better known by his stage name Young Dro, is an American hip hop recording artist from Bankhead, Atlanta, Georgia. After gaining recognition with his regional hit song “Yes Sir", from his 2002 independent album I Got That Dro, Young Dro aligned himself with fellow Atlanta-based rapper T.I. and signed to his label, Grand Hustle Records, in 2004. Young Dro's major-label debut Best Thang Smokin', was released in August 2006, under Grand Hustle and Atlantic Records. The album was preceded by his debut single "Shoulder Lean", which served as the album's lead single and proved to be a hit in the urban community and Billboard charts.[2] After amassing an abundance of mixtapes, Dro released his second album High Times, seven years later on October 15, 2013, under Grand Hustle, Atlantic and eOne Music. It spawned the single "FDB", his highest charting single since "Shoulder Lean".

Biography

1979–2006: Early life and Best Thang Smokin'

On January 15, 1979, Young Dro was born D'Juan Hart in Bankhead, a neighborhood on Atlanta's west side.[3] His inspiration for wanting to rap came from the success of one of his best friends, Chris "Daddy Mack" Smith, one half of Kris Kross.[3] Musically speaking however, Goodie Mob—also west Atlanta natives—had the biggest impact on him.[3] Hart embarked on his professional career around 1999 when he signed to bass music rapper Raheem the Dream's local Atlanta label, Tight IV Life Records, under just the moniker Dro.[4] He released the regional hit "Yes Sir", and an album titled I Got That Dro, around the same time T.I. released his debut, I'm Serious.[4] Although Hart had known T.I. since the early '90s, they grew apart for some time.[4] In 2004, Young Dro signed a recording contract with T.I.'s label imprint, Grand Hustle Records.[4][5] Young Dro released his commercial debut single "Shoulder Lean", in the summer of 2006.[4] The song had heavy rotation on BET and MTV2, and its cellular phone ringtone sold over 500,000 units.[4] The hit single was featured on his major-label debut Best Thang Smokin', released on August 29, 2006.[6] The album debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart.[7]

2007–2013: Mixtapes and High Times

In 2008, Hart was included in XXL's first annual Top 10 Freshmen list, featured on their cover alongside fellow American rappers Lupe Fiasco, Lil Boosie, Joell Ortiz, Plies, Saigon, Rich Boy, Gorilla Zoe, Papoose and Crooked I.[8] On March 17, 2009, Hart released a single titled "Take Off", featuring his protege Yung L.A.. The song was originally released as the first single from his then-titled second studio album P.O.L.O. (Players Only Live Once).[9] On February 23, 2011, he released a mixtape titled Equestrian Dro.[10] On March 17, 2011, he released a mixtape titled I Co-Sign Myself.[11] On July 8, 2011, he released a mixtape titled Drocabulary.[12] On January 16, 2012, he released a mixtape titled We Outchea.[13] On July 24, 2012, he released a mixtape titled R.I.P. 2 (I Killed That Shit).[14] On September 26, 2012, he released a mixtape titled Ralph Lauren Reefa.[15] On March 28, 2013, the first single from his second studio album "FDB" was released.[16] On June 17, 2013, Young Dro released the mixtape Day Two, in promotion for his second studio album.[17] On July 10, 2013, Young Dro announced he would be releasing his second studio album, titled High Times, in October 2013.[18] On September 18, 2013, the album cover was released and it was announced that the album would be released on October 15, 2013.[19] On September 30, 2013, the track-listing was unveiled, revealing guest appearances on the album from Forgeeauto, Mac Boney, T.I., Spodee, Problem, Natasha Mosley, Blu June, Doe B and Miloh Smith.[20] On September 30, 2013, the second single from High Times, titled "Strong", was released.[21] High Times would chart at #57 on the Billboard 200 and at #9 on the Top Rap Albums chart.

2015–present: Da Reality Show

On February 27, 2015, the first single from his third studio album "We in da City" was released.[22] On April 27, 2015, Young Dro announced he would be releasing his third studio album, titled Da Reality Show, in the summer of 2015.[23][24] It was released on September 18, 2015.[25]

Discography

Main article: Young Dro discography

Awards and nominations

Award Category Year Result
BET Hip Hop Awards Element Award: Best Hip Hop Dance Of The Year (Shoulder Lean) 2006 Nominated
BET Hip Hop Awards Best Collabo (Shoulder Lean with T.I.) 2006 Nominated
BET Hip Hop Awards BET Mobile Hot Ring Award (Shoulder Lean with T.I.) 2006 Won
The Dirty Awards Best New Dirty 2006 Nominated
The Ozone Awards Best Rapper Award (Georgia) 2006 Won

References

  1. ^ http://www.xxlmag.com/news/2013/01/happy-birthday-young-dro/
  2. ^ Cordor, Cyril (2006). "Young Dro > Biography". allmusic. Retrieved September 6, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c Langhorne, Cyrus (2012-10-15). "T.I.'s Grand Hustle Protégé's Cash Woes Exposed, "Just Had His Bad A** Maserati Repo'd"". Sohh.Com. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Byron, Dennis (2006-08-09). "Young Dro: Best Thang Smokin' | Rappers Talk Hip Hop Beef & Old School Hip Hop". HipHop DX. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  5. ^ http://www.rapweekly.com/?m=200607
  6. ^ "iTunes - Music - Best Thang Smokin' by Young Dro". Itunes.apple.com. 2006-06-27. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  7. ^ "Young Dro - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-01-23.
  8. ^ "Where Are They Now?: 2007 Freshman Recap - XXL". Xxlmag.com. 2012-03-27. Retrieved 2014-01-23.
  9. ^ "iTunes - Music - Take Off (feat. Yung L.A.) - Single by Young Dro". Itunes.apple.com. 2009-03-17. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  10. ^ Homie, Big (2011-02-25). "New Mixtape: Young Dro Equestrian Dro". Rap Radar. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  11. ^ : damaya919 (2011-03-17). "New Mixtape: Young Dro I Co-Sign Myself". Rap Radar. Retrieved 2013-10-10.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  12. ^ "Young Dro - Drocabulary Hosted by DJ Smallz // Free Mixtape @". Datpiff.com. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  13. ^ : damaya919 (2012-01-16). "New Mixtape: Young Dro We Outchea". Rap Radar. Retrieved 2013-10-10.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ Homie, Big (2012-07-24). "New Mixtape: Young Dro R.I.P. 2 (I Killed That Shit)". Rap Radar. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  15. ^ Homie, Big (2012-09-26). "New Mixtape: Young Dro Ralph Lauren Reefa". Rap Radar. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  16. ^ "iTunes - Music - FDB - Single by Young Dro". Itunes.apple.com. 2013-03-28. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
  17. ^ "New Mixtape: Young Dro Day Two". Rap Radar. 2013-06-17. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
  18. ^ Attia, Amir (2013-07-10). "Young Dro "High Tymes" Release Date". HipHop DX. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
  19. ^ "Young Dro High Times Cover". Rap Radar. 2013-09-18. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
  20. ^ "UPDATE: Young Dro Reveals 'High Times' Cover Art & Track List - XXL". Xxlmag.com. Retrieved 2013-09-30.
  21. ^ "iTunes - Music - Strong - Single by Young Dro". Itunes.apple.com. 2013-09-27. Retrieved 2013-10-10.
  22. ^ http://www.amazon.com/We-In-Da-City-Explicit/dp/B00U246BAC
  23. ^ http://www.ugdigital.com/blog/2015/4/27/atlanta-rapper-young-dro-preps-new-album-da-reality-show-and-releases-new-video-for-single-we-in-da-city
  24. ^ http://www.parlemag.com/2015/04/young-dro-preps-new-album-releases-we-in-da-city-video/
  25. ^ https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/da-reality-show/id1031704299
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