Pooh Shiesty: 5 Things To Know About Memphis’ Skyrocketing Rap Star
Pooh Shiesty has arrived. In just three years, the 21-year-old phenom has attained impressive milestones as an artist.
Recently, Pooh’s talent was on full display to a national audience in his debut TV performance on The Tonight Show. He didn’t disappoint. Pooh unleashed his signature hardcore bravado in “Back in Blood.” The revenge anthem, which has gone platinum, is a standout single from his debut mixtape Shiesty Season that features Lil Durk.
As far as debuts go, it’s all been golden for Pooh.
Shiesty Season came out the gates at no. 4 on the Billboard’s 200 Chart and no. 1 on Billboard’s Rap Albums Chart. In March, the South Memphis native topped Rolling Stone’s Breakthrough 25 Chart and was chosen by Spotify’s RapCaviar as one of the “10 Artists to Watch in 2021.”
Pooh Shiesty is on a mission. “I’m just going to keep on going and don’t ever stop,” he told BET.com.
Here are five things to know about this skyrocketing rapper – BET’s Amplified artist for April 2021.
He leveraged YouTube to get his big break.
One thing is clear when talking to Pooh Shiesty: He’s serious about his business and works hard to get things done.
He was independent-minded when launching his career. Pooh crafted his own videos and posted them to his YouTube channel, racking up millions of views and attracting a growing legion of followers.
As part of the Choppa Gang crew, which included Big 30, he made waves with “Breaking News” in 2018, which has collected more than 700,000 views. He followed that up with tracks like “Hell Night” and in August 2019 with “Shiesty Summer,” which has more than 12.3 million views.
Gucci Mane came calling.
All that hard work paid off. It wasn’t long before Pooh got noticed.
Pooh said Atlanta rap mogul Gucci Mane sent him a DM on Instagram in April 2020 after watching one of his YouTube videos (“Main Slime”).
“What’s up Homie,” the message began. “I’m listening to your stuff. You’re hard. Are you signed?”
Pooh read the message with disbelief. “I didn’t think it was real. I thought it was one of those fake DMs,” he recalled.
But it was real. The two FaceTimed for a couple of hours. When all was said and done, Pooh signed with Gucci’s The New 1017 label venture with Atlantic Records.
He was a new rapper but not new to the game.
Pooh’s father founded the Memphis-based Mob Ties Record and rapped under the nickname Mob Boss.
“He wasn’t just no rapper. He had his own record label,” Pooh emphasized about his first mentor (he calls his dad OG) in the industry.
As a young kid, Pooh saw first-hand how things worked in the studio, from how to set up the mics to how recording sessions work.
When Pooh’s big break came, his dad gave him “a lot of advice, like, be ready for whatever comes of this.”
- advertisement
Surprisingly, he didn’t plan to become a rapper.
“I ain’t never wanted to be a rapper. I just tried it at 18,” he revealed. “I had seen everything and went through everything, so I decided to try rapping.”
Despite growing up in the heart of Memphis’ rap scene, which gave birth to legends like Three-6 Mafia and Yo Gotti, Pooh didn’t dream of adding his name to the city’s list of hip-hop royalty.
Once he got started, he quickly developed his own brand.
Growing up, Pooh listened to hip-hop artists like Lil Wayne and Meek Mill. However, he didn’t imitate them when it came time to launch his career. He cultivated his own style.
“You can’t compare me to nobody,” he emphasized.
In his videos, Pooh always has stacks of cash, either thumbing through the bills or walking around with 20s and 100s stuffed in his pockets. He constantly rattles off his signature adlib, “Bdrrr,” while performing, typically accompanied by a finger gun.
His hardcore lyrics are based on his “experiences…things I’ve seen” while coming of age in Memphis.
