Roddy Ricch was headed in the wrong direction; by the time he was in eighth grade, he was already enrolled in anger management sessions. They did not help, and as a teenager, the street life had fully taken hold of his life. The rapper became a robber, and he developed PTSD due to the trauma of watching his close friends die. His time of being a nuisance came to an end when he faced a potential gun charge that made him rethink his life’s choices. Today, the musician is proud of being a first-time father able to provide for his young family, and he is reaching for the stars in his musical career. Roddy Ricch’s net worth currently stands at $3 million, and here is the story of how he achieved it.
It was never about money
For most people, rapping is usually their way out of poverty, but Roddy Ricch did it for fun. His love for rap music began as a child, and at eight years, he was a great rapper. However, a music career was the farthest thing from his mind. Instead, he enjoyed exploring his other talent for playing basketball; he was like Michael Jordan but more like Allen Iverson in high school. Despite such skills on the court, he never gave basketball a second thought; instead, he started getting in trouble. By the time he was 15, Roddy had been kicked out of his mother’s house and had to fend for himself using the illegal means. That carefree life led to him being arrested, and the couple of weeks in jail he spent helped him change his life for the better because he found the experience far worse than what he had ever pictured.
Luckily, Roddy had already discovered his love for rap music. His friends saw the gift an encouraged him, but since Roddy had witnessed that rappers barely made money out of rapping, he was comfortable to do it for fun. However, that ride to jail became an eye-opening experience. He knew he had to change his ways for the better, and once out of jail, he took the rap music seriously. At 16, he bought his first recording equipment and began recording music in his room. He told Passion Weiss that in 30 minutes, he could make a song so, in a night, he could record as many as six songs. Hence in 2017, he had his first album “Feed Tha Streets” that had 17 songs. He was worried that he had made a mistake because those were the only songs he had at that point. However, that became the start of his rise to the top as people like Meek praised it.
Aligning himself with the right people
Roddy was heavily influenced by Southern rappers, most especially Speaker Knockerz. In his interview with MTV, Roddy disclosed he was only 19 and fresh out of high school when he discovered Speaker who inspired him to think about the direction his life was taking. Consequently, with the determination to also be successful, he reached out to Speaker’s team, and they were impressed by Roddy’s style. According to them, most people had failed to make it in music because as much as they admired Speaker, trying to imitate him was always disappointing. Roddy, on the other hand, has never been ashamed of his past, and he believes that is what sets him apart from the rest. Therefore even as he writes his lyrics, he reflects on what he or other people he is close to have been through and tries to educate the youth from such experiences.
However, despite being inspired by musicians like Young Thug, and Lil Wayne, Roddy said that he would not be where he is today were it not Nipsey whom he met after Keefa Black introduced the two Keefa and Roddy had a working relationship, but it developed to be a close friendship, and soon his chemistry with Nipsey also grew into a working relationship. Before long, the two musicians recorded “Racks in the Middle,” which found its way to the Billboard Hot 100 at #26 and earned him a Grammy Award. Having experienced such success, Roddy was open to more collaborations. Keefa introduced him to Marshmello with whom they produced “Project Dreams” that wound up on Billboard Rhythmic Chart at #28.
Making a hit song
Roddy told Entertainment Weekly that he does not consider anything as single; to him, everything is an album, and he works towards ensuring his fans get the right message. Therefore when he recorded “The Box,” he did not plan on turning it into a hit by collaborating with specific artists. Instead, he only wanted to make music with his friends and see what his fans like. He must have been surprised to have the song debut at #47 on the Billboard Hot 100. Four weeks later, it was the number 1 song on the Billboard’s hot 100 and the first new song topping the chart in the 2020s decade.
It was such a milestone in the artist’s young career. He believes that as months pass by and more people get to digest the song, he will know if it is a classic or not, depending on its performance. However, he does not take it for granted that he has made it this far. For Roddy, his prosperity is because God has used him as an instrument, to be the leader of a new era. His success has further cemented his faith in God; he recalls growing up, people went to church but kept struggling, which made their faith waiver.
The millions he has accumulated from topping the charts and going platinum have further motivated him to look into real estate. Roddy disclosed that he watched his grandmother hold minimum-wage jobs in her teenage years then owning property in her 50s. Therefore, the rapper knew that if he ever made a substantial amount of money, he would invest in property too. He consequently saved up enough to buy some property in Compton, but the fact that he loves a low-key life ensures that most of his fans do not know what he is up to even in his personal life. This massive success could be the beginning because, according to Time, his success is much bigger than what the charts and streaming platforms show meaning that in the coming years, Roddy Ricch’s net worth will increase.
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