1997–2010: Playaz Circle and Disturbing tha Peace Epps formed the hip-hop duo
Playaz Circle (the word "Playaz" having been made into a
backronym for "Preparing Legal Assets for Years from A to Z") in
College Park, Georgia, in 1997, with his high school friend Earl Conyers (known as Dolla Boy), while Epps adopted "Tity Boi" as his
moniker. Following the release of an
independent album titled
United We Stand, United We Fall (2002),
2011–2012: Name change and Based on a T.R.U. Story Epps faced allegations of sexism for his original
pseudonym, "Tity Boi", although he has repeatedly denied such accusations. In early 2011, he decided to change his stage name to "2 Chainz," as he perceived it to be more "family–friendly." Regarding the name change, he further explained to
Vibe magazine: "The name Tity Boi actually came from my big mama, from me being spoiled and an only child—breastfed. My mama called me Tity Boi, my dad called me Tity Man, my hood called me Tit so when we was trying to rap I had been going by Tit my whole life, Tit, Tity, Tity Man —it's just like a country nickname —term for being an only child." Following the name change, Epps released a
mixtape titled
T.R.U. REALigion, which became his first mixtape to appear on the music charts, peaking at number 58 on the US
Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. After the success of the mixtape, Epps made numerous
guest appearances on tracks by prominent artists such as would be renamed
Based on a T.R.U. Story and released on August 14, 2012. The album's lead single, "
No Lie," featured Canadian rapper
Drake, was released on May 8, 2012. On May 11, rumors spread that Epps had signed with Kanye West's
GOOD Music label after West
tweeted, "2 Chainz is charging 100k for a verse now cause he's G.O.O.D!!!!!" However, Epps later denied those rumors, saying, "He just said I'm good, like I'm ill. But we was talking and I think I was jeopardizing my brand sometimes by doing the homeboy special. So I think he felt like we should just put that out there that we ain't doing no more of that." On May 30, 2012, 2 Chainz was featured on
Ciara's promotional single "
Sweat," the intended lead single from her fifth studio album,
One Woman Army. Based on a T.R.U. Story debuted at number one on the US
Billboard 200, selling 147,000 copies in its first week. The album received mixed reviews, earning a score of 55 on
metacritic. By September 23, 2012, it had sold 288,000 copies in the United States. That September, Epps performed at the
2012 MTV Video Music Awards alongside his longtime friend
Lil Wayne. After releasing his debut album,
Based on a T.R.U. Story, Epps made significant strides. He organized his first solo worldwide tour, selling out most of its dates. He was nominated for over 13
BET Hip Hop Awards, and he won four; he earned
The Source Magazine's "Man of the Year" award, released collaborative endeavors with ADIDAS and later Beats By Dre; and received nominations for three
Grammy Awards, including Best Rap Album.
2012–2015: B.O.A.T.S. II: Me Time and ColleGrove In late 2012, Epps stated that once he completed the
B.O.A.T.S. concert tour, he would reenter the studio. In November 2012, he revealed he was three songs deep into his second studio album. The album's estimated release date was April 2013. The rapper made a guest appearance on
NBC's
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in an episode that aired on May 8, 2013. He also appeared as himself in the second season (episode 16, titled "...And Just Plane Magic") of the
CBS sitcom
2 Broke Girls, where he traveled on the same private planes as the two main characters. On May 23, 2013, he announced that he would release his second studio album,
B.O.A.T.S. II: Me Time, on September 10, 2013. On June 2, 2013, Epps premiered the first single from the album, titled "Feds Watching," at the
Hot 97's Summer Jam. The song features
Pharrell Williams, and they recorded it on the night of the
2013 Grammy Awards. On June 15, Epps announced the title of his second album would be
B.O.A.T.S. II: Me Time. Def Jam Recordings released the album on September 10, 2013.
B.O.A.T.S. II: Me Time featured
guest appearances from
Pharrell Williams,
Fergie,
Drake,
Lil Wayne,
Pusha T,
Mase,
Chrisette Michele,
Iamsu!,
T-Pain, Dolla Boy,
Rich Homie Quan, and
Lloyd.
Diplo,
Mike WiLL Made It,
Drumma Boy,
J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League,
Mannie Fresh, Wonder Arillo,
Honorable C.N.O.T.E., and
DJ Toomp handled the production of the album. The single "Used 2," along with the
promotional singles "
Where U Been?" and "Netflix," support it.
Music critics generally gave the album positive reviews. It also fared decently commercially, debuting at number three on the US
Billboard 200 and number two on the
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, selling 63,000 copies in its first week. On October 23, 2013, Epps revealed that he had begun working on his third studio album immediately after the release of
B.O.A.T.S. II. He also stated that he had the first single from his third album ready for release and that he still wanted to get
Jay-Z featured on the album. In November 2015, 2 Chainz revealed that he was releasing a joint album with
Lil Wayne, titled
ColleGrove. On May 5, 2014, Epps released a brand new EP titled
FreeBase for free digital download. The album featured seven songs and collaborations with
Lil Boosie,
A$AP Rocky,
Rick Ross, and other artists. The EP earned over 200,000 downloads. In January 2014, Epps released a promotional single titled "I'm a Dog."
2016–2019: Pretty Girls Like Trap Music and Rap or Go to the League On January 27, 2016, Epps released an EP titled
Felt Like Cappin. He released it on online streaming sites and
iTunes. The single "Back On That Bullshit" featuring
Lil Wayne promoted the EP In 2016, Epps kicked off the year by releasing a collaborative album with rapper Lil Wayne titled
ColleGrove in March. The album was supposed to mark the debut collaboration between 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne. However, Wayne's legal battle with
Cash Money Records stopped him from taking the lead on the album. As a result, Epps assumed the role of the main artist on the album, with Lil Wayne making appearances on eight tracks. The album features prominent producers such as
Honorable C.N.O.T.E.,
Mike Will Made It,
Zaytoven,
TM88,
Metro Boomin,
London on da Track, and more.
ColleGrove received decent reviews from critics and fans. Epps continued his work in 2016 with the August 5 release of the mixtape
Daniel Son: Necklace Don, a 9-track mixtape that Epps released independently. Originally, the mixtape included
Drake and
YFN Lucci, but Epps decided to transfer the track "Big Amount ft. Drake" to the 2017 studio album
Pretty Girls Like Trap Music due to its widespread appeal and the stellar performance by the featured artist.
Daniel Son: Necklace Don received a 3-out-of-5-star review from
XXL magazine. 2016 was wrapped up by Epps's third mixtape, titled
Hibachi for Lunch, which was released on October 28. The 7-track mixtape originally featured
Quavo,
Gucci Mane,
Ty Dolla Sign, and
Future. However, the song "Good Drank ft.
Quavo and
Gucci Mane" was moved to
Pretty Girls Like Trap Music.
Mike Will Made It, K Swisha, and
Buddah Bless were the notable producers for the project. In 2017, Epps released his fourth studio album, titled
Pretty Girls Like Trap Music, on June 16 on
Def Jam Recordings. The album featured
Travis Scott,
Nicki Minaj,
Swae Lee,
Migos,
Jhene Aiko,
Pharrell Williams, and more.
Mike Will Made It,
Buddah Bless,
Mike Dean,
Murda Beatz, and others produced the album. Three official
singles supported the album: "
Good Drank", "
It's a Vibe," and "
4 AM". Additionally, a nationwide concert tour and several
pop-up shops across the US promoted the album.
[1]
[2] 2 Chainz alluded to the album showing "growth and maturation." He stated that the content would retain its edginess while elevating
trap music to a level everyone could appreciate.
Pretty Girls Like Trap Music received widespread critical acclaim, with many critics calling it his best album yet. On November 15, 2017, the first episode of
Most Expensivest aired on the TV network
Viceland. The show focused on 2 Chainz visiting different locations and offering the "most expensive" goods and services. Each show covers a particular theme, ranging from personal health to extravagant indulgences. The show offered a unique insight into products and services that have been created with the explicit intent of being exclusive and expensive. 2 Chainz offered a unique and often humorous insight into the products, especially the ones that he personally found to be either amazing or ridiculous. The network renewed the show for a 20-episode third season, which aired in early 2019. Epps released his fourth EP, ''
The Play Don't Care Who Makes It'', on February 8, 2018, through
Def Jam Recordings. The EP includes four songs, with
YG and
Offset featuring on the track "
Proud."
T-Minus, June James, Nonstop Da Hitman, Streetrunner, and others handled the production. On February 19, 2018, Epps announced his new album,
Rap or Go to the League, initially set for release in 2018, but eventually released on March 1, 2019. Epps took to the mic on March 26, 2020, to announce the release of
ColleGrove 2, a sequel to their 2016 album
ColleGrove, slated for later that year.
2020–2022: So Help Me God and ''Dope Don't Sell Itself'' In August 2020, following his
Verzuz battle with
Rick Ross, Epps announced that he would title his upcoming sixth album
So Help Me God! The album initially had a release date set for September 25, 2020. However, in the week leading up to its planned release, delays occurred due to sample clearances. Epps said, "It should be another couple weeks." He then announced its release for November 13, 2020, preceded by the single "Quarantine Thick," featuring
Latto. On September 24, 2020, Epps played against
Big Boi and his family on the season premiere of the reality game show
Celebrity Family Feud. On August 3, 2021, Epps announced that his seventh album would be his last trap album, titled ''
Dope Don't Sell Itself''. Epps hosts the concert series
Amazon Music Live, which premiered on October 27, 2022.
2023–present: Welcome 2 Collegrove and Def Jam departure In November 2023, 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne released their first collaborative album together,
Welcome 2 Collegrove. It acts as a sequel to Epps' third studio album,
ColleGrove (2016), though both performers are finally billed as co-leading artists following the latter's label dispute being settled.
50 Cent also acts as a skit narrator on the album. Released on November 17, it debuted at number twenty on the
Billboard 200, with first-week equivalent units of 34,000, despite mixed critical reviews. It was supported by two singles, "
Presha" and "
Transparency" (featuring singer
Usher). On October 14, 2024, after 22 years under Def Jam (his first eight through Ludacris' imprint and the following fourteen under the parent label), Epps announced that he parted ways with the label after choosing not to re-sign, deeming himself a "
free agent". On February 7, 2025, 2 Chainz,
Larry June, and
the Alchemist linked up to release the collaborative studio album
Life Is Beautiful. It marks his first major release since leaving Def Jam. ==Personal life==