Kyle Alfonso Myricks (born October 30, 1982), better known by his
stage name
A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...
Stalley, is an American
rapper
Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
from
Massillon, Ohio
Massillon is a city in Stark County, Ohio, Stark County in the U.S. state of Ohio, approximately west of Canton, Ohio, Canton, south of Akron, and south of Cleveland. The population was 32,146 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Mass ...
.
Music career
In 2008, Stalley made his mixtape debut, titled ''Goin Ape'', with fellow Ohio-native rapper
Terry Urban
Terry Urban is an American artist, DJ and music producer best known for his mixtape albums Viva La Hova, Southerngold and Biggie Stardust.
Biography
Terry Urban was born in Cleveland, Ohio on May 23, 1977. After graduating school he moved to ...
. In 2009, he followed with the release of the new mixtape, titled ''MadStalley: The Autobiography'', and a newfound reputation as a force on stage. Stalley attended the 2010 Iron Mic Competition in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
as the featured MC.
2011–2017: Maybach Music Group
After Stalley signed a deal to
Rick Ross
William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper.
Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Sean Combs, D ...
'
Maybach Music Group
Maybach Music Group (; abbreviated MMG) is a record label imprint founded by American rapper Rick Ross. Maybach Music Group albums are distributed by Atlantic Records, a division of the Atlantic Records Group. Atlantic took over distribution fo ...
(MMG) label. Stalley has worked with producers
Ski Beatz
David Anthony Willis, known professionally as Ski Beatz, is an American record producer from Greensboro, North Carolina, mainly working in hip hop.
Biography
Discovered by DJ Clark Kent, Ski was originally known as "MC Will-Ski" in the late 19 ...
on the tracks, including "Address", "S.T.A.L.L.E.Y.", "Do It Big", and "Harsh Ave". Artist, named Rashad Thomas, was featured on album ''Lincoln Way Nights'' and a recording artist, named
J. Rawls
Jason Rawls (born February 27, 1974), better known by his stage name J. Rawls, is an American hip hop musician, producer, disc jockey (DJ), educator, and speaker born in Columbus, Ohio. He is best known for his work with Masta Ace, Mos Def ...
would be featured on the track "Babblin".
Stalley was featured on
Curren$y
Shante Scott Franklin (born April 4, 1981), better known by his stage name Currensy (often stylized as Curren$y), is an American rapper. In 2011, he founded the label Jet Life Recordings.
Music career
2002–2008: No Limit and Young Money ...
's Universal/Def Jam album ''
Pilot Talk
''Pilot Talk'' is the third studio album by rapper Curren$y. It was released under Damon Dash's DD172 record label division, BluRoc Records.24 Hour Karate School'' and ''24 Hour Karate School, Pt. 2''. In February 2011, Stalley completed a sports-themed music project, commissioned by
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
, for future use in television and online programming. Stalley's ''Lincoln Way Nights'' (released in February 2011) has received 130K+ downloads and reigned at number 2 for Bandcamp hip hop releases. ''Lincoln Way Nights'' (released in November 2011) debuted at number 18 on the
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
hip hop charts and has sold 4K+ copies. Stalley also was featured on the Maybach Music Group albums, including '' Vol. 1'' and '' Vol. 2'', along with
Rick Ross
William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper.
Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Sean Combs, D ...
's mixtape ''
Rich Forever
''Rich Forever'' is the second mixtape by American rapper Rick Ross. It was released on January 6, 2012. It became one of the most downloaded hip hop mixtapes of all time. The mixtape spawned one commercial single, "Stay Schemin'" and features gue ...
''. He also appeared on Ross' fifth studio album ''
God Forgives, I Don't
''God Forgives, I Don't'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Rick Ross. It was released on July 30, 2012, by Maybach Music Group and Slip-n-Slide Records, and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. The album was produced by several recor ...
''.
His most recent mixtape '' Savage Journey To The American Dream'' (released in March 2012), which reached 100K downloads in the first week, and was featured as the Stereogum Mixtape of the Week and the Spin Rap Release of the Week (7 out of 10). It was graded an XL by XXL, and HipHopDX awarded it 3.5 out of 5. The mixtape almost entirely produced by Huntsville, AL underground veterans Block Beattaz. Stalley's debut retail single " Swangin" featuring Scarface, from his ''Honest Cowboy'', released on March 26, 2013 reuses a beat from
G-Side
G-Side is an American hip hop duo from Huntsville, Alabama. The group consists of ST 2 Lettaz (born Stephen Harris) and Yung Clova (born David Williams).
History
ST 2 Lettaz and Yung Clova first met at the Boys & Girls Club in Athens, Alabama. I ...
's namesake track "Swangin" off their 2008 album " Starshipz & Rocketz", also produced by Block Beattaz. The music video was released on July 9, 2013 and featured a cameo from
Paul Wall
Paul Michael Slayton (born March 11, 1981), better known by his stage name Paul Wall, is an American rapper and DJ. He has spent much of his career affiliated with Swishahouse Records, and has released several albums under the label and collabor ...
. On August 8, 2013, following of his mixtape's release, it was met with generally positive reviews from critics such as
PopMatters
''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
. After it was revealed, it received a nomination at the 2013's
BET Hip Hop Awards
The BET Hip Hop Awards are an annual awards show, airing on BET, showcasing hip hop performers, producers and music video directors. The awards ceremony began in 2006; it was held on November 12, 2006 at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia, and w ...
for the "Best Mixtape Category". After receiving a great response from his label, he released '' Honest Cowboy: EP'' to iTunes on September 17, 2013, which is on the same day as the release of the label's third compilation album ''
Self Made Vol. 3
''Self Made Vol. 3'' is the third compilation album by MMG. The album was released on September 17, 2013, by Maybach Music Group and Atlantic Records. Like the two previous albums in the ''Self Made'' series, the album features contributions from ...
''.
On August 22, 2014, Stalley announced his debut album, ''Ohio'', and four days later, he announced October 27 as the release date.
On August 21, 2015, almost one year since announcing his debut album, Stalley released a seven track mixtape, titled ''The Laughing Introvert''. On January 25, 2016, Stalley released his 7th mixtape titled
Saving Yusuf
''Saving Yusuf'' is the 7th mixtape by American rapper Stalley
Kyle Alfonso Myricks (born October 30, 1982), better known by his stage name Stalley, is an American rapper from Massillon, Ohio.
Music career
In 2008, Stalley made his mixtape ...
.
2017–present: Independent
In 2017, Stalley released his second and third albums through
Real Talk Entertainment
Real Talk Ent. is an American privately held record label that was started in 2003. It is led by CEO/President Derrick "Sac" Johnson and is focused primarily on recording and releasing new albums with Gold and Platinum selling Rap and R&B artists. ...
, ''New Wave'' and ''Another Level''. In an August 4 interview with ''Respect.'' magazine, he confirmed he was now independent.
In continuation of his independent releases, Stalley released the ''Tell The Truth: Shame the Devil'' in late 2017. The EP was the first in a trilogy, with Vols. 2 and 3 released in 2018.
On November 1, 2019, Stalley released an album titled Reflection Of Self: The Head Trip, a collaboration entirely produced by West Coast beatmaker
Jansport J
JanSport is an American brand of backpacks and collegiate apparel, now owned by VF Corporation, one of the world's largest apparel companies. JanSport is the world's largest backpack maker, and together, JanSport and The North Face, also owned by ...
. The album was self-released on his Blue Collar Gang imprint.
Stalley announced a full length project, titled ''Blacklight,'' entirely produced by
Apollo Brown
Erik Vincent Stephens (born June 20, 1980), better known professionally as Apollo Brown, is an American record producer from Detroit, Michigan, United States. He is a member of the hip hop group Ugly Heroes (alongside Red Pill and Verbal Kent) an ...
on the independent
Mello Music Group
Mello Music Group (MMG) is an American independent record label based in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 2007, Mello Music has released hip hop compilations and albums by producers and rappers such as Oddisee, Apollo Brown, Mr. Lif, Ghostface Kill ...
label. Set for release on November 19, 2021, the album has features from
Joell Ortiz
Joell Christopher Ortiz (born July 6, 1980) is an American rapper and a former member of the group Slaughterhouse. Ortiz grew up in the Cooper Park Houses in the East Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York, formerly signed to Dr. Dre's Afte ...
and
Skyzoo
Gregory Skyler Taylor (born December 24, 1982), known professionally as Skyzoo, is an American Songwriter and rapper. He has released a number of notable solo and collaborative albums, including '' Cloud 9: The 3 Day High'' with 9th Wonder in ...
, who both also separately collaborated with
Apollo Brown
Erik Vincent Stephens (born June 20, 1980), better known professionally as Apollo Brown, is an American record producer from Detroit, Michigan, United States. He is a member of the hip hop group Ugly Heroes (alongside Red Pill and Verbal Kent) an ...
on their own recent albums.
Personal life
Stalley is a
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
. When asked about his beard, he revealed he wanted something to grow with him as he grew as an artist, and "Second, I am a
Sunni Muslim
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word ''Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagree ...
and it’s part of my religion and me reflecting on all the prophets and great men who had beards before me who were all wise and humbled in their ways of greatness."