At the beginning of his flamboyant rap career, American hip-hop artist Two Chains was known to many under the nickname Tity Boi. The rapper received such a simple name from his parents as a child, as he was the only child in the family and he was considered the most spoiled.
Childhood and youth of Tawheed Epps
Tawheed Epps was born into an ordinary American family on September 12, 1977 in Virginia (USA). In his school and youth years he was fond of basketball and had some success.
Despite the fact that at the age of 15 he was detained by the police for possession of drugs, he graduated from the University of Virginia quite well.
At the age of 22, together with his school friend Earl Conyer (Dolla Boi), he formed the duo Playaz Circle.
Friends jointly released the album United We Stand, United We Fall, thanks to which the performers were very popular in their city and a fan base appeared.
This phenomenon could not go unnoticed by the popular DJ Ludacris, who later took the duo to his label and collaborated with them for several years.
It was during these years that the rapper experienced small ups and downs of his hip-hop career, accompanied by many years of unemployment.
The first popularity of the artist
In the autumn of 2007, the duo released their first label record, Supply & Demand, featuring the hit single Duffle Bag Boy, performed together with the equally famous Lil Wayne.
The track instantly gained popularity with the audience. The duo later performed the tracks with Lil Wayne at the Bet Hip Hop Music Awards.
A few years later, the Playaz Circle group released the next compilation, Flight 360: The Takeoff, which was less successful than the first.
The performer himself blames the label for the "failure" of the album, which did not allow the publication of an independent promo from the duet. Thus reducing the chances of huge sales from the album.
After the “failure” of the record, the rapper decided to take his career into his own hands and show everyone what he is capable of. In 2010, after Ludacris' numerous delays, the rapper left the label and embarked on a solo career.
He also changed his name to 2 Chainz, consonant with the English change - change, due to the constant attacks of critics who considered the previous name offensive to the fair sex.
He had problems with the law and was detained by the police several times for possession and use of marijuana. During a tour in support of the second album, the artist's tour bus was detained for illegal possession of weapons, unofficial prescriptions for medications and marijuana residues.
Independent life Two Chains
Having changed not only his name, but also his musical life, the musician released a 7-track mixtape TRU REALigion, which debuted at number 58 on the Billboard chart.
After a runaway success, the rapper began collaborating with Kanye West и Nicki Minaj, after which it became even more popular.
First album release
The first independent and solo album Basedona TRU Story went straight to the top Billboard positions. Such figures and the accolades on Twitter from Kanye West created a buzz on the Internet, which added to Two Chains more track sales and popularity.
For his debut album, Epps was nominated for 13 BET Hip Hop Awards, several of which he took with him.
Received "Person of the Year" status from Source Magazine, collaborated with Adidas, Beatsby Dr. Dre was nominated for Best Album by the Grammy Awards.
After the tour ended, Epps returned to the studio to begin work on his second banger record. He kept the studio together with his longtime colleague Dolla.
Simultaneously with the work on the record, the rapper participated in the filming of such popular American television series as Law & Order, Two Broke Girls.
2 Chainz and Pharrell Williams
In June 2013, the promo single Feds Watching was released, on which the singer worked with Pharrell Williams. And on September 10 of the same year, his next solo album BOATS II: Me Time was released.
The record debuted immediately at number 3 on the Billboard chart thanks to collaborations with such famous musicians as Fergie, Pusha T, Drake, Lil Wayne and others.
A month after the release of the second record, the rapper began working on his third album. In May 2014, the artist's mini-album Free Base appeared on digital platforms, available for free listening and downloading. On the disc, you could hear work from Asap Rocky, Rick Ross and others.
In the same year, in an interview on the radio, the rapper admitted that he did not write down the lyrics of the track, but kept it in his head. The fact is that he has non-calligraphic handwriting, in most cases he did not understand what was written.
In 2017, the composition Pretty Girls Like Trap Music was released. The album was received warmly by critics, describing it as an "adult" work. Popular artists collaborated with Epps on some tracks: Nicki Minaj, Travis Scott, Swae Lee, Migos, Pharrell Williams and others.
2 Chainz today
Today, Two Chains continues to delight the "fans" with his work. In 2019, he released the album Rapor Goto the League, which debuted at number four on the Billboard 200. The album also received good reviews from music critics.
In addition, the rapper is engaged in work at his own studio The Real University (producing hoodies and sweaters of his own brand Dabbing Sweaters), also attending the games of the LA Lakers basketball team and raising three children.
In February 2022, the rap artist presented the latest trap LP Dope Don't Sell Itself. Featured: Lil Baby, Lil Durk, Roddy Ricch, NBA Youngboy, 42 Dugg, Moneybagg Yo and Swae Lee. The collection is topped by 11 cool tracks.
