Theodore Joseph Jones III (September 19, 1984 – October 29, 2018), better known by his stage name Young Greatness, was an American rapper. He was best known for his 2015 single "
Moolah",
which peaked at number 85 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart.
He was shot and killed in October 2018.
Early life
Jones was born on September 19, 1984, in
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
. He moved to
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
after
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
.
[Young Greatness]
at AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
He grew up listening to
Juvenile,
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...
and
Biggie Smalls
Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...
.
Career
Taking the stage name Young Greatness, he began attracting notice from Houston rappers such as
Bun B
Bernard James Freeman (born March 19, 1973), known professionally as Bun B, is an American rapper. He is best known as one half of the southern rap duo UGK (UnderGround Kingz), a group he formed in 1987 alongside Pimp C. Aside from his work with ...
and
Mike Jones, resulting in a deal with the record label
Quality Control Music
Quality Control Music (also known as Quality Control or QC) is an American hip hop record label founded by Kevin "Coach K" Lee (Chief operating officer, COO) and Pierre "P" Thomas (Chief executive officer, CEO) in March 2013. Its productions were ...
and
Motown
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...
in 2015.
In November 2015, he released the single "
Moolah", which peaked at number 85 on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100.
In March 2016, ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' included Greatness in their list of "10 New Artists You Need to Know". In July 2016, Greatness performed "Moolah" on ''
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Spartina Productions and CBS Studios, it is the second it ...
''.
Death
On October 29, 2018, Jones was fatally shot outside a
Waffle House on
Elysian Fields Avenue
Elysian Fields Avenue is a broad, straight avenue in New Orleans named after the Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris. It courses south to north from the Lower Mississippi River to Lake Pontchartrain, a distance of approximately . The avenue int ...
in
. He was 34 years old.
Discography
Mixtapes
Singles
See also
*
List of murdered hip hop musicians
This is a list of rappers and hip hop musicians murdered since 1987.
Two studies in the mid-2010s concluded that murder was the cause of 51.5% of hip hop musician deaths. The average age of death is between 25–30 years of age. Hip hop has a ...
References
1984 births
2018 deaths
African-American male rappers
American male rappers
Musicians from New Orleans
Rappers from New Orleans
Rappers from Houston
Deaths by firearm in Louisiana
People murdered in Louisiana
20th-century African-American people
21st-century African-American people
Rich Gang members
{{US-musician-stub