Highsnobiety

Rico Nasty

Rico Nasty

REAL NAME

Maria-Cecilia Simone Kelly

BORN

May 7, 1997

BIRTH PLACE

New York, USA

BASED

Los Angeles, CA

INSTAGRAM

YEARS ACTIVE

2014 – present

NET WORTH

Approximately $300,000

WHO

Aged only 22, the genre-bending DMV-rapper has accomplished more than most of her peers and is quickly becoming a heavy-hitter on the rap scene. Working closely with producer Kenny Beats they’ve carved out her own unapologetic sound spanning punk and heavy metal influences, and she rhymes with relentless rage and a seemingly limitless vocal range.

Their first song together ‘Smack A Bitch’ in 2018 racked up more than 15 million views on YouTube, which was followed by success-mixtape ‘Nasty’ on Atlantic Records – dubbed ‘one of the hardest rap records of the year’ by Pitchfork.

The follow-up ‘Anger Management’ dropped in April 2019 as a result of a five-day studio binge. It is fronted by an album cover created by Keith Rankin (aka Giant Claw) inspired by the 70s’ psychology-book ‘The New Primal Scream’, and has received accolades all-round, which also saw her perform at Coachella. Born Maria-Cecilia Simone Kelly, she grew up in Maryland being exposed to rap music from an early age.

After graduating high school in Baltimore she spent the first few years of her music career cultivating her “sugar trap”-sound putting out ‘iCarly’, which became an instant viral hit in 2016, and the single ‘Hey Arnold,’ (later remixed featuring Atlanta rapper Lil Yachty).

She subsequently released two mixtapes in 2016 – ‘Sugar Trap’ and ‘The Rico Story’, resulting in a lot of attention from the media and general public.

The single ‘Poppin’ was released in 2017, racking up millions of views on YouTube, and was also featured on the HBO hit show ‘Insecure’. The same year she put out her fifth mixtape, Sugar Trap 2, which was hailed as one of the best Rap Albums of 2017 by Rolling Stone.

SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY

Mixtapes
Summer’s Eve, 2014
The Rico Story, 2016
Sugar Trap, 2016
Tales of Tacobella, 2017
Sugar Trap 2, 2017
Nasty, 2018
Anger Management (with Kenny Beats), 2019

Singles
iCarly
Hey Arnold
From The Rico Story, 2016

Poppin
Key Lime OG
From Sugar Trap 2, 2017

Rage
From Nasty, 2018

1997

May 7th, 1997, Maria-Cecilia Simone Kelly, known professionally as Rico Nasty, is born in New York City.

2014-2016

Rico Nasty begins releasing music, gaining attention with tracks like "iCarly" and "Hey Arnold."

2018

Rico Nasty releases her breakout album, "Nasty," which includes popular tracks like "Smack a Bitch" and "Countin' Up."

She also collaborates with rapper and artist Doja Cat on the viral track "Tia Tamera"

2019

Rico Nasty releases the album "Anger Management," a collaborative project with producer Kenny Beats.

2020

Rico Nasty releases the album "Nightmare Vacation," featuring a diverse range of styles and collaborations.

2022

Rico Nasty releases her sophomore studio album "Las Ruinas" on July 22nd, 2022.

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