10 Things You Should Know About King Louie

The rapper is the latest Chi-Town export to go major.

10 Things You Should Know About King Louie - Move over New York, Atlanta and L.A. There's a new rap city in town: Chicago — at least if the recent spate of Windy City upstarts signing major label deals is any indication. Following in the footsteps of his compatriot Chief Keef, King Louie is the latest young Chicago rapper to hit the big time, with a freshly inked contract with Epic Records. It's no surprise: Louie's emerged as one of hip hop's most promising rookies over the past couple years. Been sleeping? Click on as BET.com runs down everything you need to know about King Louie. —Alex Gale(Photo: Epic Records)

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10 Things You Should Know About King Louie - Move over New York, Atlanta and L.A. There's a new rap city in town: Chicago — at least if the recent spate of Windy City upstarts signing major label deals is any indication. Following in the footsteps of his compatriot Chief Keef, King Louie is the latest young Chicago rapper to hit the big time, with a freshly inked contract with Epic Records. It's no surprise: Louie's emerged as one of hip hop's most promising rookies over the past couple years. Been sleeping? Click on as BET.com runs down everything you need to know about King Louie. —Alex Gale(Photo: Epic Records)

Lucky to Be Here - In an eerie recall of another Chicago rapper's famous backstory, King Louie was put on life support three years ago after being struck by a car.(Photo: Epic Records)

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Lucky to Be Here - In an eerie recall of another Chicago rapper's famous backstory, King Louie was put on life support three years ago after being struck by a car.(Photo: Epic Records)

Made the Best of a Bad Thing - Much like 50 and his bullet-induced mumble-flow, King Louie's accident affected his voice — but maybe in a good way. “It f---ed up my vocal chords when they put the tube down my throat,” Louie told XXL earlier this year. “I sound a bit different now. But once I got back in the studio, I just started going hard.”  (Photo: Epic Records)

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Made the Best of a Bad Thing - Much like 50 and his bullet-induced mumble-flow, King Louie's accident affected his voice — but maybe in a good way. “It f---ed up my vocal chords when they put the tube down my throat,” Louie told XXL earlier this year. “I sound a bit different now. But once I got back in the studio, I just started going hard.”  (Photo: Epic Records)

King L - At 24, King L is a relative senior citizen of Chicago’s drill scene, but with age comes maturity, and King’s flow, hooks and ear for beats show more polish and wit than the brute-force music of his younger peers. After a 2012 that included a Kanye shout-out on the “I Don’t Like” remix and two well-received mixtapes, King is ready to drop his major-label debut, Dope & Shrimp, which features Juicy J, Pusha T, Young Chop and more. (Photo: Epic Records)

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A Brand New Smile - After Louis signed with Epic, the label reportedly hooked him up with a dentist's appointment; the car accident had left him with severely chipped teeth.(Photo: Epic Records)

Red Café and 2 Chainz Think He's "Too Cool" - King Louis got some big-name backing when when he connected with 2 Chainz and Red Café to record a remix to his underground hit "Too Cool" last year.(Photo: Epic Records)

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Red Café and 2 Chainz Think He's "Too Cool" - King Louis got some big-name backing when when he connected with 2 Chainz and Red Café to record a remix to his underground hit "Too Cool" last year.(Photo: Epic Records)

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His Mixtape Game Is No Joke - King Louie's buzz reached eardrum-shattering levels when he dropped his awesomely-named Chiraq Drillinois mixtape last year.(Photo: Epic Records)

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His Mixtape Game Is No Joke - King Louie's buzz reached eardrum-shattering levels when he dropped his awesomely-named Chiraq Drillinois mixtape last year.(Photo: Epic Records)

Photo By Photo: Epic Records

Real-Life, Offline Buzz - Like many new rappers, DIY YouTube videos boosted King Louie's profile in a major way, but he's got old-school, grassroots word-of-mouth, too, thanks to an aggressive stickering campaign that saw his name and logo pasted all over Chicago.(Photo: via Instagram)

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Real-Life, Offline Buzz - Like many new rappers, DIY YouTube videos boosted King Louie's profile in a major way, but he's got old-school, grassroots word-of-mouth, too, thanks to an aggressive stickering campaign that saw his name and logo pasted all over Chicago.(Photo: via Instagram)

King L - Chief Keef's album may have tanked, but all hope is not lost for Chicago's drill music scene--not with King L's major label debut on the way. After shouting the upstart rapper out on the "I Don't Like" remix, Kanye could give another boost to his hometown's next generation by tapping L for a guest verse.(Photo: Epic Records)

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A Young Veteran - Though just 24 years old, King Louie's no rookie: He dropped his first mixtape, Boss S--t, back in 2007.(Photo: Epic Records)

He Reps for His City - King Louie dropped his latest mixtape, The Motion Picture, in March, backed by features from Chief Keef and other Chi-Town up-and-comers.(Photo: Epic Records)

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He Reps for His City - King Louie dropped his latest mixtape, The Motion Picture, in March, backed by features from Chief Keef and other Chi-Town up-and-comers.(Photo: Epic Records)

Kanye's Cosigning Him - King Louie's name got a big boost when Chi-Town rap god Kanye West shouted him out on his recent remix to "I Don't Like," the firecracker anthem by another up-and-coming native son, Chief Keef. “Chief Keef, King Louie / This is Chi, right?” Yeezy rapped.(Photos from left: Def Jam, Epic Records)

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Kanye's Cosigning Him - King Louie's name got a big boost when Chi-Town rap god Kanye West shouted him out on his recent remix to "I Don't Like," the firecracker anthem by another up-and-coming native son, Chief Keef. “Chief Keef, King Louie / This is Chi, right?” Yeezy rapped.(Photos from left: Def Jam, Epic Records)

Major Label Debut on Deck - Louie's debut studio album, Dope & Shrimp, was already in the works when word leaked earlier this month that he'd inked a deal with Epic. But now, with major label muscle behind him, expect the album to reach truly royal heights.(Photo: Courstey of Terrence Antonio James/ Chicago Tribune)

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Major Label Debut on Deck - Louie's debut studio album, Dope & Shrimp, was already in the works when word leaked earlier this month that he'd inked a deal with Epic. But now, with major label muscle behind him, expect the album to reach truly royal heights.(Photo: Courstey of Terrence Antonio James/ Chicago Tribune)