Lil Tjay

Tione Jayden Merritt (born April 30, 2001), known professionally as Lil Tjay, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter from New York City. Born and raised in the Bronx, his musical career began in 2017. He is best known for his singles "Brothers" and "F.N", which peaked at number 56 on the Billboard Hot 100. His debut studio album, True 2 Myself (2019), peaked at number 5 on the US Billboard 200.

Lil Tjay
Merritt in 2019
Background information
Birth nameTione Jayden Merritt
Born (2001-04-30) April 30, 2001[1]
South Bronx, New York
Genres
InstrumentsVocals
Years active2017–present
LabelsColumbia
Websiteliltjaymusic.com

Career

2017–2019: Beginnings, record deal, and True 2 Myself

In 2017, Lil Tjay began releasing music on SoundCloud.[3] "Resume", one of his first songs, was released when Tjay was 16 years old, and quickly began spreading online. On March 10, 2018, Tjay competed and placed first at the Coast 2 Coast LIVE NYC All Ages Edition, where his performance gained the attention of a record label A&R who was in attendance to judge the showcase.[4] Soon after, Tjay released the single "Brothers", which became his biggest song at the time and led to him signing with Columbia Records.[5]

Within the first ten months of Lil Tjay's music career, he had released five tracks that recorded over one million plays on SoundCloud.[6][7] "Brothers", "Resume", "Goat", and "Leaked" each accumulated tens of millions of streams.[8] In July 2018, Lil Tjay worked with producer Cash Money AP to release "None of Your Love", which also amassed tens of millions of plays.[6] Lil Tjay released his debut EP No Comparison at the end of 2018.[7]

In January 2019, Tjay was featured on rapper Polo G's single "Pop Out", which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100.[9] Later that year, he released an EP titled F.N; the project's lead single, "F.N", peaked at number 56 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became his first solo charting song. Lil Tjay released his debut album True 2 Myself on October 11, 2019. It debuted and peaked at number 5 on the US Billboard 200.

2020: State of Emergency

In early 2020, Lil Tjay reached the Billboard Hot 100 again with his single "20/20", which peaked at number 94 on the chart. On May 8, 2020, Lil Tjay released the EP State of Emergency, which focused heavily on drill music, a popular subgenre in New York City.[2] The seven-song EP included the track "Zoo York", featuring Fivio Foreign and Pop Smoke, which peaked at number 65 on the Hot 100.[10] In July 2020, Lil Tjay appeared on Pop Smoke's debut posthumous album, Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon, on the track "Mood Swings", which reached number 17 on the Hot 100.[11]

On August 11, 2020, Lil Tjay was included on XXL's 2020 Freshman Class.[12]

Artistry

Influenced by his upbringing in the Bronx, Lil Tjay is a melodic rapper who frequently incorporates auto-tune in his songs.[13] He has drawn comparisons to fellow New York rapper A Boogie wit da Hoodie and aamer29o [14] In an interview with Rolling Stone, he revealed that his biggest musical influences are Drake, Meek Mill, and Usher.[13] In the same interview, Lil Tjay described his music as having a melodic sound when singing or rapping about his past struggles. Lil Tjay also credits his success to his year spent in prison, where he claims that his ability to write songs peaked.[7] In Pitchfork's featured article on Lil Tjay, he is referred to as a "hip-hop heartthrob".[3] Later in the interview, Lil Tjay explained that he is often called the "Bronx Justin Bieber" because of his sampling Justin Bieber's "Baby".[3]

Live performances

Lil Tjay accompanied Seattle rapper Lil Mosey on his nationwide tour throughout 2019.[15][16] He also has performed at the three-day Rolling Loud Miami music festival, along with Migos, Travis Scott, and Kid Cudi in Miami Gardens, Florida in May 2019[17] and at the Los Angeles festival in December. He frequently appears and performs on concerts with close friend Lil Uzi Vert

Discography
Main article: Lil Tjay discography

References
  1. Video on YouTube
  2. Williams, Kyann-Sian (May 8, 2020). "Lil Tjay – 'State Of Emergency' EP review: trap'n'b star makes cynical grab for New York drill hype". NME. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  3. "Get to Know Hip-Hop Heartthrob Lil Tjay, Who Wants to Be the Next Usher". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  4. "Lil tjay – Lil tjay Performs at Coast 2 Coast LIVE | NYC All Ages Edition 3/10/18 – 1st Place | Videos | Coast 2 Coast LIVE | Largest Artist Showcase in the World". Coast 2 Coast Live. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  5. Suarez, Gary. "5 Hip-Hop Singles To Watch This Winter On The Billboard Hot 100". Forbes. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  6. "Exploding NYC rapper Lil Tjay doesn't want 'None Of Your Love'". Elevator. August 2, 2018. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  7. "Lil Tjay | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  8. "Lil Tjay". SoundCloud. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  9. "Lil Tjay on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  10. ""Fans are loving Lil Tjay's song Zoo York"". May 8, 2020. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Twitter.
  11. "Pop Smoke Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  12. Cline, Georgette (August 11, 2020). "XXL 2020 FRESHMAN CLASS REVEALED". XXL. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
  13. Holmes, Charles (January 3, 2019). "Rising Bronx Rapper Lil Tjay Will Make You Feel Old". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  14. Hunt, Relly (June 21, 2018). "Lil Tjay is New York's next big STAR". Gritty Vibes Magazine. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  15. "Lil Tjay – Upcoming Shows, Tickets, Reviews, More". JamBase. August 26, 2018. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  16. "Lil Mosey, Lil TJay, C Glizzy, Bandkids". Chicago Reader. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  17. "Rolling Loud Miami 2019: Travis Scott, Kid Cudi, Cardi B, amogh <3 Kiran, and More". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
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