22Gz

Jeffrey Alexander was born on November 29, 1997 in Brooklyn, New York. He was raised in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn.[8] His father died before he was born, and his older brother was sentenced to 16 years in prison.[9] He started his entertainment career on the New York City Subway performing showtime dance routines.[10]

After releasing the singles "Blixky" and "Suburban" in 2016, 22Gz gained a following from his YouTube videos. "Suburban", produced by London based drill/UK grime producer AXL Beats,[11] was regarded as one of the first major Brooklyn drill songs to become popular.[9][2][12] 22Gz received the attention from mainstream hip hop, eventually joining Kodak Black's Florida-based label, and Atlantic subsidiary, Sniper Gang in 2018.[13][14][9] One of his first songs released on the label, "Spin the Block", was a collaboration track with Black.[15]

22Gz released his first mixtape with Atlantic, The Blixky Tape, in July 2019.[16] His follow-up mixtape Growth & Development was released on April 10, 2020, and was co-produced by London-based drill producer Ghosty.[17] Torsten Ingvaldsen of Hypebeast praised the mixtape, stating, 22Gz has "riotous energy, bringing forth aggressive lyrics and militant deliveries that continue to sculpt out his fast-paced rise".[4]

In 2014, 22Gz was charged with conspiracy to commit murder, however the charges were dropped.[9] 22Gz spent five months in jail in 2017 on second-degree murder charges related to a shooting in Miami, however these were later dropped.[18] 22Gz recorded a Facebook Live video from an NYPD holding cell in 2018.[19]

In 2019, Alexander, along with four other New York rappers including Casanova, Pop Smoke, Sheff G, and Don Q, were removed from Rolling Loud New York at the instruction of the New York City Police Department. NYPD cited "a higher risk of violence" if the artists were to perform.[20]