Lil Pump is an American rapper that rose to fame in 2017 with his hit song “Gucci Gang”. Some of his other singles include “Drug Addicts”, “Racks on Racks”, and “Butterfly Doors.” Is he still recording music? Where is he now in 2024?
Lil Pump’s Early Life and Music Debut
Gazzy Garcia, aka ‘Lil Pump’, was born on August 17, 2000, in Miami, Florida. At the age of six, however, his parents- both Colombian immigrants, divorced.
As a child, he and his siblings lived with their mom in project housing, where he had a troubled childhood. When he was in sixth grade, he was expelled from school after being caught smoking weed on school grounds.
He eventually returned to school but was expelled for a second time in the tenth grade after getting into a fight with a classmate and allegedly starting a riot.
Instead of studying, he turned his attention to music, which he’d been interested in ever since he was young. Growing up, he often listened to artists such as Fredo Santana and Chief Keef. So it was fate when his cousin, Lil Ominous, introduced him to rapper Omar Pineiro aka ‘Smokepurpp’, the latter of whom had also been expelled from school multiple times.
In 2016, Lil Pump made his music debut after freestyling over a track that Smokepurpp produced. The single, titled “Lil Pump” was later released on the music streaming platform SoundCloud, where it racked up tens of thousands of clicks.
He quickly followed up with a number of singles including “Ignorant”, “Drum$tick”, “Gang Shit”, and “Elementary”, all of which received millions of streams on SoundCloud. Before long, he had made himself known in the South Florida underground rap scene.
Later that same year, he co-headlined the No Jumper Tour and was one of the performers at the International Rolling Loud Festival. As his fame rose, he also became acquainted with other rappers such as Fat Nick, XXXTentacion, Pouya, and Ski Mask the Slump God.
Lil Pump’s Rise to Prominence
In June 2017, Lil Pump released the single “D Rose” through Soundcloud. Named after the NBA star Derrick Rose, the track quickly gained more than 30 million streams on the site. An accompanying music video, directed by Cole Bennett, was also released on YouTube.
Not only was the track praised by critics but it also charted at number 8 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart and at number 48 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Within a year, it also received platinum certification from the RIAA for achieving more than one million certified units.
Around the same time, he released “Boss”—a song that was originally released on his SoundCloud account in April 2017—as a single. The lead single from his self-titled debut album, it charted at number 40 on Billboard’s Hot R&B Songs and topped the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.
The single also received recognition in Canada, where it found its way onto the Canadian Hot 100 music chart.
Gucci Gang
Following that, he landed a record deal with Warner Records and Tha Light Globals, just two months before his 17th birthday. However, it was ultimately voided several months later as he was a minor at the time of the signing.
Despite that, he continued to make music. In the summer of 2017, he announced through social media that he was working on a debut mixtape that would be released in August. However, the release date was ultimately pushed back,
Instead, he released the single “Gucci Gang” for streaming and digital download. Originally released on SoundCloud in August 2017, the song—which was produced by Gnealz and Bighead—quickly became his best-performing single.
While critics weren’t too fond of the track, with several individuals describing it as “overhyped” and “awful”, it performed exceptionally well on the music charts. In the U.S., the single peaked at number two on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and at number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Outside of the U.S., “Gucci Gang” also charted in Canada, Australia, Denmark, Finland, New Zealand, Slovakia, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, France, Hungary, and several other countries.
By the end of the year, the single had made it onto Complex’s and Genius’ “50 Best Songs of 2017” lists.
Not only that but it also spawned a music video, that has since been viewed more than 1.5 billion times on YouTube. Directed by Ben Griffin, the video was filmed in Hollywood’s Blessed Sacrament School and featured a tiger, which walked through the hallway alongside the rapper.
In 2018, the music video was also nominated for a Billboard Music Award for Top Streaming Song, though it ultimately lost to Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito (ft. Justin Bieber).”
Lil Pump’s Self-Titled Debut Album
On October 6, 2017, Lil Pump released his self-titled debut album through Warner Records and Tha Light Global. Originally, the project was meant to be released in August but was ultimately delayed. It wasn’t until a month after the release of “Gucci Gang”, that Lil Pump announced that the album had been finished.
Produced by TM88, Ronny J, and Bighead, among others, the album came with fifteen tracks including “What U Sayin (ft. Smokepurpp)”, “Youngest Flexer (ft. Gucci Mane)”, “Smoke My Dope (ft. Smokepurpp)”, “Flex Like Ouu”, “Pinky Ring (ft. Smokepurpp and Rick Ross”, and “At the Door.”
It also featured guest appearances from Lil Yachty and 2 Chainz.
Praised for its “catchy refrains”, the album entered the Billboard 200 at number three with 45,000 album-equivalent sales within the first week. It also charted at number two on the Top R&B and Hip-Hop Albums chart and in several other countries including Canada, Finland, New Zealand, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, and Denmark.
By June 2018, the album had received gold certification from the RIAA for achieving more than half a million album-equivalent sales in the U.S. Since then, it has been certified double platinum in the U.S., and gold in Canada and France.
Signing a New Music Deal
In January 2018, Lil Pump released the song “I Shyne”, which was a collaboration with DJ Carnage. Around that time, rumors also began to surface that he had left his former music labels and was in talks with others, with the offers being as high as $8 to $12 million.
He eventually signed with Gucci Mane’s music label, 1017 Records, a month later. He also re-signed another contract with Warner Records and Tha Lights Global for an alleged $8 million.
In April 2018, he released the single “Esskeetit”, which was written and produced by CBMix. Originally teased on his Twitter account in February, the song references the drugs Actavis and Ecstasy as well as several luxury brands including Patek Philipe and Porsche.
It also gave rise to a music video, which was directed by the rapper himself. As of 2024, the video has been viewed more than 532 million times on YouTube.
To promote the single, Lil Pump also performed the song on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on May 24, 2018.
And it worked- in the United States, the single reached number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 16 on the Hot R&B Songs chart. It also charted in Belgium, Canada, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal, and several other countries.
The single was soon followed by another titled “Drug Addicts”, which was released on July 6, 2018. Produced by Dee Money and Baby Winsch, the song peaked at number 45 on the Hot Hop-Hop Songs chart and at number 83 on the Billboard Hot 100.
It was also accompanied by a music video, where Lil Pump and Charlie Sheen can be pushing a drug cart in a psychedelic hospital.
The Release of Lil Pump’s Second Album
Lil Pump dropped his second album Harverd Dropout, on February 22, 2019. Released through Warner Records and Tha Lights Global, the album came with sixteen tracks including “Nuh Uh”, “Vroom Vroom Vroom”, “Stripper Name (ft. 2 Chainz and YG)”, “Fasho Fasho (ft. Offset)”, and “Drop Out.”
It also featured guest appearances from Kanye West (who was also on the production team), Lil Uzi Vert, Migos rappers Quavo and Offset, and Smokepurpp.
Initially, Lil Pump had planned on promoting the album with a concert tour it was ultimately canceled due to ‘unforeseen circumstances.’
Despite that, the album performed well in the U.S., debuting at number seven on the Billboard 200 with nearly 50,000 album-equivalent units. It also reached number three on the US Top R&B Albums chart, making it his second top 10 album in the U.S.
While it performed well on the charts, however, critic reviews were mixed. While some praised the album’s production, others felt it had a repetitive nature and lacked depth.
Still, it was a commercial success, with more than two million certified sales in the U.S., earning it double platinum certification from the RIAA.
His Subsequent Endeavors
In early 2020, the rapper surprised everyone by saying that “[he’s] done doing music” on Instagram. Just a few days later, however, he announced that he was back. He also teased a new song.
Several months later, he released a new single titled, “Life Like Me” on SoundCloud. It was soon followed by several others including “I’monna”, and “Lil Pimp Big MAGA Steppin”.
In 2021, he announced that he had partnered up with the NFT marketplace Sweet to release various goods including Lil Pump trading cards and digital jewelry. He also came out with the track “Racks to the Ceiling”, which featured Tory Lanez.
What’s Lil Pump Doing Now in 2024 – Recent Updates on the Rapper
Lil Pump released “All the Sudden”, the lead single for his third album, Lil Pump 2, on April 12, 2022. It was followed by four additional singles- “Tesla”, “She Know”, Mosh Pit”, and “Splurgin.”
It wasn’t until nearly a year later, however, that he released the cover art for the long-awaited album. He also announced the tracklist, which features guest appearances from Ty Dolla Sign, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, and Smokepurpp.
The album, Lil Pump 2, was eventually dropped on March 17, 2023. A sequel to his self-titled album, it came with 16 tracks and was handled by a production team, which consisted of CBMix, Ronny J, Bighead, and Carnage. Some of the songs include “I Don’t Mind”, “Ain’t With That”, “All the Sudden”, “Fendi on Fendi”, “Don’t Like Me”, and “Move It.”
Unlike his previous album, however, Lil Pump 2 was barely mentioned on his social media accounts. As a result, the album was a commercial failure, having earned successfully less in its first weeks compared to his earlier projects.
Critic reviews were also negative, with several individuals panning the track “Pump Rock x Heavy Metal”.
A few months later, the rapper made the headlines after unveiling a bizarre new face tattoo. In a now-deleted Instagram post, he shared an image of the tattoo, which includes a star and various tribal elements, and asked fans what they thought of the artwork.
Ultimately, fans weren’t sure what to think of his new ink. While some noted that his tattoos have ‘never been noteworthy’, others felt that ‘it couldn’t get any worse at this point.’
And as far as performances go, Lil Pump will be performing in Flavs, an international hip-hop and R&B festival in Indonesia, later this summer. He will be joined by FLO, LOCO, DaBaby, Yugyeom, Jinan Laetitia, and several other artists.
