Joey Bada$$

Joey Bada$$ emerged from Brooklyn’s early-2010s rap underground as a co-founder of Pro Era, the regional hip-hop group he formed in 2011. Born Jo-Vaughn Virginie Scott on January 20, 1995, he helped extend the group into the larger Beast Coast collective the following year. His work has drawn on boom bap, jazz rap and East Coast hip-hop traditions while placing him among a new generation of New York rappers.

As a solo artist, Scott signed with Cinematic Music Group and released his debut mixtape, 1999, in 2012. The project and its 2013 follow-up, Summer Knights, received critical acclaim and introduced the Joey Bada$$ name beyond Pro Era’s immediate circle. He also released three mixtapes with Pro Era, alongside the group’s work as a collective.

His studio debut, B4.Da.$$, arrived in 2015, followed by All-Amerikkkan Badass in 2017. Both albums peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 and received continued critical praise. His third studio album, 2000, was released in 2022 and peaked at number 22. Alongside music, Scott began acting with a television debut in the USA Network series Mr. Robot.