Rick Ross

About Rick Ross

Rick Ross, an African American rapper was born William Roberts in Carol City, Florida on the 8th of February in 1977. It is widely believed that William Roberts adopted the stage name of Rick Ross from Ricky "Freeway," a drug trafficker and the leader of one of the biggest cocaine circulation networks the country has ever seen in the 1980s and early 1990s. Rick Ross is truly an overnight sensation. As a youngster, Rick Ross was deeply influenced by musicians Notorious B.I.G and Luther Campbell. Born and brought up in Florida's Northern Miami-Dade County, he saw first-hand the dark side of drug deals and night clubs and has incorporated such themes into his albums. He briefly worked with Suave House Records. He eventually signed up with Miami's Slip-N-Side Records, the label of big artists like Romano Trina and Trick Daddy. Rick Ross's career as a rap artist began in the mid-90s when he formed a neighborhood rap group 'Carol City Cartel.' From 2000 onwards, Rick Ross gained popularity both among the locals and outside. This was possible through tours he had done with Trick Daddy and a couple of guest appearances on Slip-N-Side releases. Rick Ross's first solo single "Hustlin" attracted several offers, most prominent of which were from Irv Gotti and Bad Boy CEO Sean "Diddy" Combs. However, he clinched a multi-million-dollar deal with Def Jam Records under Jay?Z, an esteemed rapper himself. "Hustlin"s highest position ever on the charts was 74th on the Billboard Hot 100 and 9th on the hip-hop chart. A remix of the single featuring Jay-Z and Young Jeezy also came out and was quite popular in digital downloads. In May 2006, the RIAA gave "Hustlin" a gold certification. Ring tone units of the song numbering more than a million were sold out and Rick Ross's debut album "Port of Miami" including the hit song was physically released. Rick Ross is a true workaholic, working on all 365 days of the year. His second album "Trilla" would be reaching stores on August 28th. He is currently working with Dwayne Wayde on a documentary "M.I.Yayo," about drug dealing.