Roddy Ricch Is Creating a Blueprint For Longevity

Roddy Ricch's brutally sincere “Die Young” speaks directly to the conscious, constantly swirling thought of unearned death lurking around the corner. We look at growing old as an accomplishment, yet our biggest fear is to reach that stage without anything to show for it. To this end, the rising Compton rapper’s breakout song goes by way of the ear and straight to the heart. It’s also made him a star.


Ricch, place on Earth Rodrick Wayne Moore Jr., Grew up in Compton although saw much of the nation through his parents. “I went to Chicago, Atlanta, and then some other different places,” he told MTV News. The 20-year-old started rapping around age 8 yet didn’t take it seriously up until a two-week trip to county jail that inspired him to totally change his ways. His music became fresh; its storytelling imbued with purpose. “I feel like the streets at the time didn’t have anyone to talk about what was going on there as far as on a younger scale, where I’m from,” he mentioned. “I needed to feed it to the streets. It might have went a lot of different ways, nevertheless it went up.” Feed tha Streets, his debut, was praised by Meek Mill and 03 Greedo, to name a number of. And just like that, he was thrust into a new world.


Ricch recorded “Die Young” on June 18, 2018, the night fellow rapper XXXTentacion was shot and killed. “I watch TV Once I record in the studio and I saw the report,” he mentioned. “I muted it and spilled out how I felt about it in the moment.” You could hear this spur-of-the-moment energy on the song. It’s a desperate plea for answers about early death. “Tell me why the legends routinely have to perish quick?” He sings earnestly, combining rapping and singing although remaining truthful and lightly melodic.


His fashion is reminiscent of Speaker Knockerz, the South Carolina rapper who died in 2014 at age 19. “When I was just getting into high school and I was attempting to identify what I wanted to do and why I wanted to do it, I became a fan of his,” Ricch mentioned. To this day, he keeps his name in conversation. “I spoke to his pops and his family member supports because I support. I keep his name alive because he was someone that died way also young and was an enormous influence for me.”


One fan of his was Nipsey Hussle, the legendary Compton rapper who was tragically gunned down in March. Ricch met him by chance, soon after meeting rising mogul and A&R Keefa Black, who fostered the connection. “At first, I wasn’t really fucking with it nevertheless I ended up giving Black a telephone call to chop it up and he notified me to pull up to the studio,” he mentioned. “As time progressed, I grew to know Keefa more and we became close companions. He has ties to Nip through his father, and I grew really close to each person around there.” Ricch owes a lot to the fallen rapper, revealing in a recent interview with Big Boy’s Neighborhood, “He the reason why I’m here today.” The pair collaborated on “Racks in the Middle,” a song that peaked at No. 26 on the Billboard Hot 100.


Ricch admittedly doesn’t collaborate with several, so while he teams up with someone like Nipsey, there’s a proper brotherly chemistry. Another of his recent collaborations is “Project Dreams” with DJ and electronic music producer Marshmello. It’s a reflective song that finds power in its somber atmosphere, making use of sharp bass jolts and the conventions of rave music to prepare construct a backdrop for Ricch to spill about wishing and hoping for something better any time as soon as you come from nothing. The song hit No. 28 on the Billboard U.S. Rhythmic chart.


“He’s my brother,” Ricch mentioned of Marshmello. “I got associated with him through Keefa also. He had a long relationship with him for four years and right now I’m on every one of his beats as his tag.”


Not shying away from the success he's steadily earned, Ricch says that he’s attempting to be a No. 1 contender in the rap space. The proof? He has “thousands of songs in the cut.” That’s a lot to sit on, although Ricch is unhurried, comfortable to plan and strategize at his own pace.


“When I drop, I just drop,” he mentioned. “I don’t play no one else’s game and I don’t run no one else’s race because if I did that, I wouldn't be who I am. I just live in my own lane and not worry about what anyone else is doing and settling my own pace. Fans are gonna fuck with me anyway.”


The burn of 2018's “Die Young” and “Project Dreams” has continued into this year, although there’s still a lot left for Ricch to carry out. The world’s still looking for a remix to “Die Young” — “Maybe,” Ricch mentioned — and there's an appetite for a new album. Yet first, Ricch has three things left to carry out before the year is up, a fitting bucket list for an artist whose mind is squarely focused on his legacy: “I aspire to purchase more property, begin a number of small companies, and if my cousin wants to go college, I'd like to put him through with ease.”