Rapper, songwriter, vocalist, and record producer B.o.B hails from Georgia in the US. He was raised in North Carolina and made the decision to pursue rap music in the sixth grade. Though initially not particularly encouraging of his work, B.o.parents B eventually gave him permission to follow his heart. After receiving a keyboard as a present, he began studying music independently. He had begun playing the trumpet in his school band by the time he was in elementary school. His underground hit “Haterz Everywhere” started gaining popularity in 2007, giving him a breakthrough after years of trying to get more people to hear his music. In collaboration with “Atlantic Records,” B.o.B. released his debut album, “B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray,” in 2010. The record was well-received. It included well-known performers including Bruno Mars and J. Cole. B.o.B built up a devoted following with his succeeding albums. His succeeding studio albums, “Stranger Clouds,” “Underground Luxury,” “Ether,” and “The Upside Down,” achieved a passable level of popularity. B.o.B received criticism for using the same approach throughout all of his songs, though. He became well-known by endorsing the ‘Flat Earth Society,’ a small organization of flat-earth believers.
Early Childhood & Life
On November 15, 1988, Bobby Ray Simmons Jr. was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. A few years after his birth, his family relocated to Atlanta, Georgia. In primary school, he had a deep passion for music, and at that point, he began performing in front of audiences. He continued to play the trumpet throughout high school.
His parents did not support his choice to pursue a career in music. His family, however, made the decision to help him after realizing his love and skill for music. In his early teens, he received a keyboard as a gift. Soon after, he began producing his own beats. B.o.B played the trumpet in the school band while attending “Columbia High School.” He simultaneously produced his own music and showcased his abilities to record labels.
B.o.B stopped attending school after receiving a record deal while he was in the ninth grade in order to focus entirely on music. When he sold his first beat to the rap musician Citti, he was 14 years old. At about the same period, he and his cousin formed the group “The Klinic.” When his cousin stopped hanging out with B.o.B and enrolled in college, B.o.B made the decision to pursue a solo music career.
B.o.B hired a manager in his late teens, who began advancing him. He was able to secure a contract for B.o.B to work as the DJ in one of Atlanta’s trendiest clubs.
B.o.B took advantage of the situation by charming the crowd with his expertise in hip-hop music. Industry tycoon TJ Chapman was impressed after hearing his beats and found B.o.B. Due to this, B.o.B decided to sign a deal with Atlantic Records, one of the top rap record labels in the nation.
B.O.B’s Career
B.o.B quickly rose to prominence with his underground hits, including “Haterz Everywhere.” Some of his early tracks, including “I’ll Be in the Sky” and “Generation Lost,” frequently appeared in the top 20 singles on the “Billboard” charts. He became famous after appearing on rapper ‘T.I.’s hugely popular album ‘Paper Trail.
A dozen mixtapes were produced and distributed by B.o.B between 2007 and 2008. Then he created the song “Auto-Tune” for the video game “Grand Theft Auto.” B.o.B declared that his debut studio album was almost finished in January 2010. B.o.B released a mixtape named “May 25″—an allusion to the record’s release date—to promote his impending debut album.
In late April 2010, the album, titled “B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray,” was released. It achieved the top spot on the “Billboard 200” chart in just the first week of release, selling more than 84 thousand copies. B.o.B received nominated for numerous prizes, including the “MTV Video Music Awards,” the “BET Awards,” and the “Teen Choice Awards,” thanks to the album’s widespread praise. He then took the stage to live at the “MTV Video Music Awards,” joining other rappers like Kanye West and Eminem.
While he was working on his second studio album in 2011, he scored joint songs with Jessie J and Lil Wayne. He released a mixtape in November 2011 before the release of his sophomore album, which included cameos from rappers including Eminem and Meek Mill. May 2012 saw the release of the album “Strange Clouds,” which included a number of well-known performers such as Morgan Freeman, Nicki Minaj, Taylor Swift, Nelly, and Lil Wayne.
“Strange Clouds,” the album’s lead song, was initially released in September 2011 and enjoyed both critical and financial success. Later, the album’s reviews from critics ranged from favorable to unfavorable. The album’s economic success was attributed to the participation of several notable business figures. In the first week following its release, more than 76 000 copies were sold.
B.o.B first expressed a strong interest in rock music in December 2012. Although he stated that he will be working on an EP with rock influences, he also stated that his upcoming release would be a rap album. The lead track from B.o.third B’s album, “Underground Luxury,” titled “HeadBand,” was released in May 2013. In September, ‘Ready,’ a new song from the album, was made public. The album’s December release garnered mostly favorable reviews.
The album sold 35,000 copies in its first week and debuted at number 22 on the Billboard 200. The album’s sales did, however, continue to decline with each passing week, falling as low as number 30 in its second week.
In reference to one of his earlier mixtapes, B.o.B announced the launch of his very own record label imprint in June 2014 under the name “No Genre.” One of the first artists signed by “No Genre” was Tora Woloshin. B.o.B released the song “Not for Long” in October 2014.
In order to build anticipation for his upcoming album, B.o.B teamed up with rapper Tech N9ne to produce the mixtape “Psycadelik Thoughtz” in the early months of 2015. He self-released a mixtape titled “WATER” later that year. It became clear that he and “Atlantic Records” had a falling out. Then B.o.B made a public admission that the label was “suppressing” him.
By 2017, B.o.B had left “Atlantic Records” and independently released his fourth studio album, “Ether.” Reviews for the album were extremely positive, and many of them noted that he had finally returned to form after a long absence.
His Individual Life
It is well known that B.o.B. is very forthright about his anti-establishment beliefs. B.o.B. has supported conspiracy theories that claimed the NASA moon landing was a hoax and that 9/11 was an inside job. He spoke out for social causes due to his liberal ideas.
B.o.B publicly said in January 2016 that he believed the Earth was flat and not spherical. Popular astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson responded to B.o.B. on “Twitter” by listing several instances in which the hypothesis had been refuted in the past.
Neil’s opinions were ignored by B.o.B, who in 2016 formally joined the “Flat Earth Society.” Then, in an effort to prove that the Earth was flat, he started a fundraising campaign to fund the launch of his own satellite.
B.o.B started dating musician Sevyn Streeter in 2014. The couple split up in 2015 after a short-lived relationship. After that, B.o.B mentioned her in a handful of his songs’ lyrics.
Estimated Net Worth
B.o.B is an American hip-hop record producer, vocalist, and recording artist. B.o.net B’s worth is $6 million as of the time of this writing. When he inked a record deal with Grand Hustle Records, Rebel Rock Entertainment, and Atlantic Records, he received his first significant break.