A$AP Mob

A Harlem-based hip-hop collective with a <a href="spotify:artist:1co4F2pPNH8JjTutZkmgSm">Ramones</a>-like naming scheme, A$AP Mob are known for their smoky beats, their throwback vibe, their preference for Gothic and Masonic symbolism when it comes to fashion, and their most successful member, <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">A$AP Rocky</a>. Formed around 2006 by A$AP Yams, A$AP Bari, and A$AP Illz, A$AP Mob soon recruited <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">A$AP Rocky</a> into the Mob, a collective not only of rappers but of producers, graphic designers, and fashion designers. Two years later, key member and rapper <a href="spotify:artist:5dHt1vcEm9qb8fCyLcB3HL">A$AP Ferg</a> would join the group, but it was <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">Rocky</a> who came to the forefront first in 2011, with his Deep Purple mixtape and the single "Peso." With designer A$AP Dom on board, the Mob collaborated with the streetwear brand Blvck Scvle that same year, releasing the iconic VSVP hoodie and other bits of <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">Rocky</a>-affiliated wear that mixed dark imagery. <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">Rocky</a>'s Live.Love.A$AP mixtape also arrived in 2011 and was one of the first Mob releases to feature <a href="spotify:artist:0tPjSrb43a58uznKru1k2P">A$AP Twelvyy</a>; the collective's Lords Never Worry mixtape dropped in 2012. <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">Rocky</a> made his official debut in 2013 with Long.Live.A$AP, while <a href="spotify:artist:5dHt1vcEm9qb8fCyLcB3HL">Ferg</a>'s debut, Trap Lord, followed later in the year. Other members like <a href="spotify:artist:1uLYUm2A6kpFYAECfAFoH1">A$AP Nast</a> and A$AP Ant came on board as the group signed to the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22RCA%22">RCA</a> imprint <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Polo+Grounds%22">Polo Grounds</a>. An A$AP Mob album titled L.O.R.D. was announced, delayed, and eventually scrapped by September of 2014.

In January 2015, the group announced that A$AP Yams had died at the age of 26. <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">Rocky</a>'s second studio album, At.Long.Last.A$AP, was released later in the year, and was executive produced by Yams, <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">Rocky</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5gCRApTajqwbnHHPbr2Fpi">Juicy J</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2dBj3prW7gP9bCCOIQeDUf">Danger Mouse</a>. The following year, <a href="spotify:artist:5dHt1vcEm9qb8fCyLcB3HL">Ferg</a> released Always Strive and Prosper. A$AP Mob's long-awaited official debut album, Cozy Tapes, Vol. 1: Friends, appeared in October 2016. The album's cover art was a baby photo of Yams, and guest MCs on the album included <a href="spotify:artist:137W8MRPWKqSmrBGDBFSop">Wiz Khalifa</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4V8LLVI7PbaPR0K2TGSxFF">Tyler, The Creator</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2p1fiYHYiXz9qi0JJyxBzN">Skepta</a>. Tapes peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200 and debuted in the Top Five of the R&B/hip-hop chart. "Wrong," with <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">Rocky</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:5dHt1vcEm9qb8fCyLcB3HL">Ferg</a> on the mike, was the first taste from the crew's next era. The track appeared in April of 2017, and was quickly followed by "RAF," which featured guests <a href="spotify:artist:699OTQXzgjhIYAHMy9RyPD">Playboi Carti</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0VRj0yCOv2FXJNP47XQnx5">Quavo</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4O15NlyKLIASxsJ0PrXPfz">Lil Uzi Vert</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2h93pZq0e7k5yf4dywlkpM">Frank Ocean</a>. Cozy Tapes Vol. 2: Too Cozy arrived at the end of the summer and included additional features like <a href="spotify:artist:0c173mlxpT3dSFRgMO8XPh">Big Sean</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:13y7CgLHjMVRMDqxdx0Xdo">Gucci Mane</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:15iVAtD3s3FsQR4w1v6M0P">Chief Keef</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6icQOAFXDZKsumw3YXyusw">Lil Yachty</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1dqGS5sT6PE2wEvP1gROZC">Flatbush Zombies</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2P5sC9cVZDToPxyomzF1UH">Joey Bada$$</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4iCwCMnqsNZ6atvRiADgtn">RZA</a>, and more. ~ David Jeffries, Rovi