Martin McCurtis (born May 7, 1977), known professionally as Helluva, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter from

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. He is noted for producing the 2016 single " First Day Out" by

Tee Grizzley Terry Sanchez Wallace Jr. (born March 23, 1994), known professionally as Tee Grizzley, is an American rapper best known for his singles " First Day Out", "No Effort", "Colors", and "From the D to the A" (featuring Lil Yachty). After being relea ...

Early life

Martin McCurtis was born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

and raised on the

Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

side of the city.

Career

Helluva began his career as a rap artist and producer for the independent record labels Made West Entertainment and Watchout Entertainment. Early on, he assisted local rappers, and later worked with

Akon Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (; born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of " Locked Up" (featuring Styles P) ...

and

Yo Gotti Mario Sentell Giden Mims (born May 19, 1981), known professionally as Yo Gotti, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record executive. In 1996, Gotti released his debut album ''Youngsta's On a Come Up'' under the alias Lil Yo. He went on to re ...

. His son "came up with his famous 'Helluva Made This Beat Baby' drop". He also produced Tee Grizzley and

Lil Yachty Miles Parks McCollum (born August 23, 1997), known professionally as Lil Boat, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and producer. He first gained recognition on the internet in 2015 for his singles "One Night" and "Minnesota" (featuring ...

's single, ''

From the D to the A "From the D to the A" is a song by American rapper Tee Grizzley featuring fellow American rapper Lil Yachty, released as a single on March 17, 2017. It was produced by Helluva and called "much hyped" by ''XXL (magazine), XXL''. The song's title ref ...

''. In 2018, he produced tracks on ''

Still My Moment ''Still My Moment'' is the second commercial mixtape by American rapper Tee Grizzley. It was released on November 9, 2018, by 300 Entertainment. The mixtape features guest appearances from Quavo, Offset, Chance the Rapper, and Lil Pump. It debut ...

'' and ''

The Pimp Tape ''The Pimp Tape'' is the twentieth solo studio album by American rapper Too $hort. It was released on November 9, 2018 through Dangerous Music and EMPIRE. The album features guest appearances from 2 Chainz, Adrian Marcel, Chanel West Coast, DJ K ...

'' . In 2019, Helluva was the musical director for the independent film ''

Out of Bounds In sports, out of bounds (or out-of-bounds) refers to being outside the playing boundaries of the field. Due to the chaotic nature of play, it is normal in many sports for players and/or the ball to go out of bounds frequently during a game. T ...

'', and in 2020, he produced tracks for

Megan Thee Stallion Megan Jovon Ruth Pete (born February 15, 1995), known professionally as Megan Thee Stallion (pronounced "Megan the Stallion"), is an American rapper and songwriter. Originally from Houston, Texas, she first garnered attention when videos of her ...

's ''

Suga Suga may refer to: * Suga, Iran, a village in Qazvin Province, Iran * Suga language, a language of Cameroon * Suga (rapper) (born 1993), South Korean rapper, songwriter, and record producer * ''Suga'' (EP), 2020 EP by Megan Thee Stallion * ''Sug ...

'' EP.

Influence

Okayplayer Okayplayer is an online hip-hop and alternative music website and community, described by ''Rolling Stone'' as a "tastemaker" and "an antidote to dull promotional Web sites used by most artists". The community was founded by The Roots' drummer ...

'' wrote, "Helluva is bringing Detroit street rap to the mainstream," and ''

Detroit Metro Times The ''Detroit Metro Times'' is a progressive alternative weekly located in Detroit, Michigan. It is the largest circulating weekly newspaper in the metro Detroit area. History and content Supported entirely by advertising, it is distributed f ...

'' called Helluva "the musical architect" of "Detroit trap".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Helluva African-American male rappers American hip hop record producers Rappers from Detroit 21st-century American rappers Living people 1977 births 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people