Latest Release
- AUG 9, 2024
- 1 Song
- Islah (Deluxe) · 2015
- Luca Brasi 2: A Gangsta Grillz Special Edition · 2014
- By Any Means · 2014
- Only the Generals Gon Understand - EP · 2019
- Power - Single · 2020
- KIRK · 2019
- I'm Him · 2019
- Ghetto Gospel · 2019
- 4Respect 4Freedom 4Loyalty 4WhatImportant · 2018
- Chained to the City - Single · 2018
Essential Albums
- The Baton Rouge rapper Kevin Gates has never been much for jokes. Earnest, unsparing, and intensely personal, his full-length major-label is a downcast trip through tales of the grind (“La Familia”) romantic woes (“Pride”), and the trials of balancing the two (“2 Phones”). He delivers it all with enough charm and hope to keep things from getting too dark or gritty. “Man in the mirror you way outta order,” he raps on “The Truth”—fitting words for an artist who named his album (and his daughter, for that matter) after an Arabic word meaning "to improve."
- The original Luca Brasi Story arrived in 2013—the culmination of an athletic run of independent mixtapes from Baton Rouge hero-in-the-making Kevin Gates. The tape was the clearest indicator to date of his ability as both a lyricist and melodist. The following year, its sequel would represent how much he had developed and risen in profile since that project’s release. Luca Brasi 2 would prove to be a major rung on the ladder in Gates’ climb toward significant commercial success (his 2016 major-label debut LP, Islah). The mixtape delivered the grab bag of hard-nose trap bangers and cinematic, pop-forward tracks that made Gates both more distinctive and more palpable to a wider range of hip-hop fans than many of his Southern street-rap contemporaries. The project’s success was partially based on “I Don’t Get Tired (#IDGT),” featuring August Alsina, which mined one of Gates’ ongoing catchphrases to create a sticky, radio-ready jam. Tracks like “Wassup With It” followed in this widescreen, anthemic vein, narrowing in on the topic of one-night stands. “Plug Daughter,” meanwhile, combines pop immediacy with the kind of blues-inflected hook that distinguishes Gates’ melodicism from other rappers in his field. Elsewhere, Gates shows that his technical skill has never been higher; on “Sit Down” and “Don’t Panic,” his flows are pyrotechnic and his delivery forbidding, proving that the menacing, street rap–reared aspect of his musical personality can’t be diluted, even as he embraces higher budgets and industry attention. Nor is there any avoiding Gates’ particular eccentricities, and this release is full of moments that exemplify the reasons he was never fully able to blend into the crowd of Southern trap voices. See “Makin Love,” on which his voice sounds like a subterranean rasp as he elides romance and sex with street business (“And I'm married to my hustle, makin' love/And ain't nothin' in this world could break us up“), or the startlingly explicit “Wild Ride.” Track to track, Luca Brasi 2 is one of the most varied and unpredictable rides in Gates’ discography. It is the work of an artist who knows he is on the cusp of rap-game domination and who is relishing his ability to explore new directions while still retaining his incomparable, larger-than-life personality.
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- 2018
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Artist Playlists
- Inspired by The Godfather—and telling it like it is.
- Mark Battles, Joe-Y & DJ Yung 1
More To Hear
- Interviews with Kevin Gates, Ellie Goulding, & Willie Nelson.
- Kevin Gates, Travis Barker, and Rich The Kid guest.
- The Louisiana-based MC makes his Fire in the Booth debut.
- The Baton Rouge rapper stops by, plus a chat with DJ OHSO.
- The Baton Rouge MC lands in-studio to talk his album, I'm Him.
- A look back at some of Travis' favorite hip-hop guests.
- The MC premieres "Facts" and details his album, I'm Him.
More To See
About Kevin Gates
The essence of Kevin Gates’ music is conflict—in his songs, he’s at war with the law, those who would betray him, and, above all, himself. "Sometimes in a person’s life, they can be their [own] biggest obstacle,” he told Apple Music near the release of his 2019 album I’m Him, and his records document that struggle with intensity. Born in 1986 and raised in Baton Rouge, his career developed in fits and starts as legal troubles derailed his regional momentum, but beginning with 2013’s The Luca Brasi Story, he released a string of mixtapes that steadily elevated his profile. The key to his rise was his blend of forceful storytelling and sneaky musicality—on verses, Gates’ baritone bark conveys urgency with every syllable, but he also sings with an instinctive feel for melodic hooks (see 2014’s “Great Example”). By the time of his 2016 debut album, Islah, a ferocious showcase of rapping virtuosity, his sales finally caught up with his artistry, reaching No. 2 on the Billboard 200, and singles like “2 Phones” and “Really Really” could be heard pumping out of block-shaking car stereos across the country. A proud outsider whose records are light on features and star producers, Gates doesn’t fit neatly into any single sound or scene—but considering his stellar track record and consistent evolution, that status seems to suit him perfectly fine.
- HOMETOWN
- Baton Rouge, LA, United States
- BORN
- February 5, 1986
- GENRE
- Hip-Hop/Rap