21 Savage
| Full Name | Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph |
| D.O.B | October 22, 1992 Plaistow, London, England |
| Origin | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Label |
|
| Children | 3 |
21 Savage’s debut studio album, Issa Album (2017), peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, while its lead single, “Bank Account” reached number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100. That same year, he released the collaborative album Without Warning (2017) with Metro Boomin and fellow Georgia rapper Offset and was guest featured on Post Malone’s 2017 single “Rockstar“, which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 and received two nominations—Record of the Year and Best Rap/Sung Performance—at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.
His second album, I Am > I Was(2018), became his first to debut atop the Billboard200. It spawned the single “A Lot” (featuring J. Cole), which won the Best Rap Song at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards.[12][13]
The following year, he and Metro Boomin released a sequel to their breakout EP with Savage Mode II (2020), which also debuted atop the Billboard 200 and spawned the top ten singles “Runnin” and “Mr. Right Now” (featuring Drake). He guest featured on Drake’s 2022 single “Jimmy Cooks,” which marked his first song to debut atop the Hot 100 and second to do so overall.
Later that year, he and Drake released the collaborative album Her Loss (2022), which saw continued success as his third project to peak the Billboard 200.
His third album, American Dream(2024), became his fourth consecutive chart-topping project and did so for multiple weeks.
He was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on February 3, 2019. Officials revealed his status as a British citizen who entered the U.S. in July 2005 and unlawfully overstayed an H-4 visa that expired in 2006.
He was granted bond on February 12 and released the next day, pending the outcome of an expedited deportation hearing, which was initially scheduled for April 9, but was later postponed indefinitely, with 21 Savage’s lawyers stating he was legally residing in the U.S. for several years prior to the 2005 H-4 visa. In 2023, 21 Savage became a lawful permanent resident of the United States and received his green card; he is eligible for citizenship in 2028.
Early life
In seventh grade, Abraham-Joseph was placed on probation for gun possession. Following a probation violation in the eighth grade, he was banned permanently from every school in the DeKalb County School District. This led him to begin attending schools around the Atlanta metropolitan area before being sent to a juvenile detention center.
After being released from the juvenile detention center, he completed eighth grade through an alternative program before finishing a semester of high school, but dropped out in his freshman year following multiple exclusions that he said “exhausted” him. After dropping out, he joined a local street gang affiliated with the wider Bloods gang and became a full-time drug dealer, mainly selling cannabis.
He also regularly took part in other criminal activities, including robbery and car theft, although he was only arrested once after contraband was found in a car he was driving. In 2011, when he was 19, his “right-hand man” Larry, was killed in a shootout.
In 2013, during an attempted robbery on his 21st birthday, Abraham-Joseph was shot six times by rival gang members, and his best friend Johnny was killed.
Musical style
Tours
- Issa Tour (2017)
- Numb the Pain Tour (2017)
- I Am > I Was Tour (2019)
- American Dream Tour (2024)
Co-headlining
- The Off-Season Tour (2021) (with J. Cole)
- It’s All a Blur Tour (2023) (with Drake)
Opening act
- HiHorse’d Tour (2016) (with Young Thug)
- Beerbongs & Bentleys Tour (2018) (with Post Malone)
References
- ^ Lamarre, Carl (October 4, 2023). “21 Savage Planning International Tour After Years of Immigration Issues”. Billboard. Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
- ^ Price, Joe (October 5, 2023). “Drake Says 21 Savage Finally Got His Green Card on ‘8AM in Charlotte’“. Complex. Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
- ^ “Rapper 21 Savage did not talk about being British for fear of US deportation”. The Guardian. Associated Press. February 16, 2019. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on March 21, 2019. Retrieved March 22, 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Rogen, Seth (April 26, 2018). “21 Savage chops it up with Seth Rogen”. Interview Magazine. Archived from the original on July 11, 2018. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
- ^ Daniels, Karu F. (April 23, 2019). “Sylvia Rhone named chairman and CEO of Epic Records”. New York Daily News. Archived from the original on April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2019
