Long before North Carolina rapper Cordae emerged as a star in his own right, he was a key member in Birmingham, Alabama MC YBN Nahmir’s YBN crew. The posse was formed when Nahmir and fellow Birmingham spitter YBN Almighty Jay discovered a shared love of video games and rap music and brought like-minded heads across America into the fold via online networking. Though each of its members has grown outside of these humble beginnings, the success of stars like Cordae, YBN Glizzy and Nahmir showcases the latter’s proficiency as a leader and wrangler of talent. Nahmir, born Nicholas Alexander Simmons in 1999, first created the group out of necessity, as his hometown had little in the way of rap stars. So Nahmir and his crew took influence from the West Coast stylings of ‘90s stars like E-40 and Eazy-E. These influences manifest themselves most clearly on the crew’s breakthrough release, 2018’s YBN: The Mixtape. Tracks like “Porsches In the Rain” and “Bounce Out With That” feature rubbery basslines and infectious choruses that fit neatly into the lineage of California hip-hop songs that celebrate late-night cruising and backyard barbecues. Nahmir carried the momentum of that tape into 2020, with singles like “Talkin” and “2 Seater”, which features G-Eazy and Offset, proving that Nahmir’s slow-build approach to his career is the right move. He may no longer carry the flash that his partner Cordae does, but Nahmir has always been the power player behind the scenes, stepping into the spotlight to steal the show whenever he desires.