Jay Rock

Johnny Reed McKinzie Jr. (born March 31, 1985), better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper, singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, he signed to the local independent label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2005. Through the label, he secured a major label record deal with Warner Bros. Records and Asylum Records to release his 2008 debut single, “All My Life (In the Ghetto)” (featuring Lil Wayne and will.i.am). Failing to chart, the mergers fell through and Rock departed from both of the latter labels shortly after. He then signed with Missouri rapper Tech N9ne’s record label Strange Music, in a joint venture deal with TDE in 2011.Preceded by ten mixtapes through TDE, Rock’s long-delayed debut studio album, Follow Me Home (2011) was released to moderate commercial reception and critical praise. The album was supported by the aforementioned single, as well as “Hood Gone Love It” (featuring Kendrick Lamar). His second album, 90059 was released independently through only TDE and spawned the singles “Money Trees Deuce” (featuring Lance Skiiiwalker), “Gumbo” and its title-track. His third album, Redemption (2018) was released through Interscope Records and peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200 while receiving critical acclaim. Its lead single, “King’s Dead” (with Kendrick Lamar, Future, and James Blake) was shared with the Black Panther soundtrack and peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching his furthest commercial success.

Apart from his solo career, Rock is also known for being a member of the now-defunct hip hop supergroup Black Hippy, alongside fellow West Coast rappers and TDE label-mates Kendrick Lamar, Schoolboy Q and Ab-Soul. In 2019, Jay Rock received a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance for “King’s Dead”.

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