Baltimore rap duo Peso Da Mafia were formed in the mid-2010s by MCs Shordie Shordie and PDM Purp. Both rappers were born and raised in crime-heavy neighborhoods of Northeast Baltimore, and their early work centered around storytelling lyrics about hectic street life, with a delivery that melded harmony with stuttering rhyme schemes. The group first received recognition in the summer of 2016 for "Pray on My Knees," a unique single that grew slowly from minimal production and a catchy hook into a fiery second half. With momentum from the single, Peso Da Mafia released the What Matters Most mixtape later in the year. The following spring, their song "Money Man" inspired a local dance craze in Baltimore, skyrocketing the single to regional fame as its accompanying video was viewed over two million times. Now fully established as both regional sensations and nationally noteworthy, Peso Da Mafia followed in September of 2017 with their next single, "Look at Me." The trio's first full-length, Never a Drought, appeared in June 2018. ~ Fred Thomas