Last updated: 5 hours ago
Born Joey Pieper in St. Louis, Missouri, MC Yak Boy Fresh was mentored by <a href="spotify:artist:2gBjLmx6zQnFGQJCAQpRgw">Nelly</a> associate and <a href="spotify:artist:6rxiUsSvkn5yTs1kfuV8Le">St. Lunatics</a> member <a href="spotify:artist:7k5N7JJKEPUPQfK8whGITe">Ali</a>. <a href="spotify:artist:7k5N7JJKEPUPQfK8whGITe">Ali</a> considered adding the then-nine-year-old rapper as a <a href="spotify:artist:6rxiUsSvkn5yTs1kfuV8Le">Lunatics</a> associate, but with member <a href="spotify:artist:2gBjLmx6zQnFGQJCAQpRgw">Nelly</a> ready for superstardom, the too young Fresh was left to develop. By the time he hit his early twenties, regular gigs around St. Louis earned him a loyal following, while opening shows for <a href="spotify:artist:6UBA15slIuadJ8h2lPRPos">Tech N9ne</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6TIYQ3jFPwQSRmorSezPxX">Machine Gun Kelly</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5spEJXLwD1sKUdC2bnOHPg">Bone Thugs-N-Harmony</a>, and other national acts helped spread the word. <a href="spotify:artist:7k5N7JJKEPUPQfK8whGITe">Ali</a> then returned and signed the MC to his Derrty Entertainment, and in 2014, he released the Life on the Road album on the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Outfit+Music+Group%22">Outfit Music Group</a>. T.I.E. (Timing Is Everything) followed in 2015 and included the single "Roll Up & Smoke" featuring <a href="spotify:artist:07W0YfsvHM7Mw7Bq48Mb0A">Murphy Lee</a>. ~ David Jeffries, Rovi