Offset

Long before he introduced "rain drop, drop top" into the pop-culture lexicon, Offset was a familiar character: an aspiring rapper with one foot still in the streets he rhymed about. Born Kiari Kendrell Cephus in 1991, he first showcased his knack for memorable wordplay and electrifying on-record exclamations while climbing to the top of the mainstream rap hierarchy as one-third of Migos. Though his turbulent past often clouded his ascent, Offset positioned himself as a lyrical ace on the group's 2013's breakout mixtape, Young Rich N****s, boosted by "Hannah Montana,” "Bando," and the Drake-assisted mantra "Versace." After the ubiquitous impact of Migos' triplet flow, a pair of influential albums (2017's Culture and 2018's Culture II), and a seemingly endless series of catchy, ad-lib-laced anthems by the Southern rap crew ("Bad and Boujee," "T-Shirt," and "Stir Fry"), Offset mostly abandoned rowdy bangers for deep reflection on his debut solo album, 2019's Father of 4, the result of sifting through the tales of his troubled journey. Armed with introspective bars about drug addiction, infidelity regrets, and impoverished, crime-littered days, he's attracted conversations around being one of the most vital narrators in rap, all the more amplified by unforgettable solo features (Kodak Black's "ZEZE" and Tyga's "Taste"). Though Offset began his career as one part of an interdependent group, he emerged as a freewheeling rap raconteur with a pioneering rhyme scheme to make his narrative that much more captivating.