Before They Were Famous

Their music was raw, grimy, laced with kung-fu references, and featured tongue-in-cheek lyrics over top of distorted soul samples. Quite frankly, it was like nothing else we’d ever heard before, and to this day, their music remains unquestionably singular with their debut album, “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” going onto be considered one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time. But what’s true and what isn’t when it comes to the mythology of the Wu-Tang Clan? And more importantly, what have they been up to lately? Well, you’re about to find out.

Today we got another Canadian creator who is blowing up in a big way and according to a local newspaper from back in the day Stromedy, or Kyle Godfrey had always been dubbed the class clown. His road to YouTube fame is a pretty interesting story. The kid once worked at a local grocery store and tried his hand at acting and college before pouring his life into his YouTube channel & yes, we've dug up a ton of old clips that were sure Kyle wishes we never found. Before YouTube turn, Kyle into a multi-millionaire people were telling him not to bother with posting content online. Now he's got his own Team 10 operation in the works. He's picked himself up a $2 Million dollar crib here in Toronto and another rental out in LA. Kudo's to him but of course, when your rising to the top of the world of social media of course there will be people there to try and tear you down. We got lots to get through.

Memphis-born rapper Pooh Shiesty is one of the hottest up-and-coming rappers in the game right now thanks to tracks like “Main Slime Remix” and “Shiesty Summer”. Shiesty has cornered the market on airy beats that pair nicely with his powerful delivery and slick production. Over the last year, he’s racked up millions of streams and has definitely secured himself the bag.
Pretty impressive for a kid who earned a whole ton of his success while maintaining his independent status. And, I mean, how many artists can say they have their face on a hundred-dollar bill? Beyond that, Shiesty is also hip enough to know that musicians these days can make a fortune on Merch sales, especially if they’re as viral as he is.

Icebox is a forward-thinking jewelry store for the new generation of rappers and, quite frankly, its popularity is off the charts thanks to their one-of-a-kind approach to showcasing their catalog. The store has its very own YouTube Channel with 1 Million subscribers that features more hip-hop legends than any other channel outside of something like Complex or Genius – seriously, Lil Baby, NLE Choppa, Lil Pump, and so many more are regulars who stop by all the time to get custom work done. But here’s the thing – while YouTube videos and Instagram posts are great for showing off the goods, only we can tell you how this business started and where the legend of Icebox truly began.

Rapper DMX took over as the undisputed king of rap. X, whose real name is Earl Simmons was that rare breed of a superstar whose credibility on the streets would turn him into a commercial powerhouse and while his ascent to the top of the rap game was almost a decade in the making, his journey transformed him into one of rap’s most iconic personalities. It can be easy to forget how successful X was. I mean, to this day, he’s the only rapper to ever have his first five studio albums debut at number 1 on the Billboard 200. X has also made headlines for reasons outside of his career. He’s been in jail around 30 times throughout the course of his life with charges varying from drug possession to robbery, to probation violation, and a whole lot in between. He’s also struggled with an addiction to questionable substances since he was 14-years-old – and this addiction to narcotics would result in the latest turn of events in his life – being admitted to the hospital in April of 2021 after suffering a heart attack due to an overdose. So, as DMX fights for his life and as some of his closest friends in the industry send out their warmest wishes for him to get better.

Before Johnny Orlando would create the YouTube channel “JohnnyOSings” and kick off a career that would catapult him to the top of the Canadian music scene. Before Johnny Orlando would drop his newest EP “It’s Never Really Over”. In a lot of ways, Johnny is still your typical kid – during the day he hangs out with friends and catches up with his homework, but on some nights, he turns into a musical superstar that sells out concerts across the world and racks up millions of streams on each of his singles. This Toronto-born singer initially rose to fame by posting covers on YouTube, which he began doing in 2011, and since then he’s built himself an enormous global following with Millions of fans across the world.

Rod Wave has been singing ever since he was in the 5th Grade, but believe it or not, that didn’t convince him that he had a future in music. When this self-described super-shy dude was a kid in St. Petersburg, he really didn’t have any idea what he wanted to be. But these days, Rod is one of the most promising singers in the game and he definitely wouldn’t have it any other way. Why was Rod’s pre-fame life so difficult? Well, it probably had something to do with his stints in juvenile detention. When he finally got out, it was his family who encouraged him to dream big -- his pops helped him get a jump start on his music career by buying him a microphone and his brother chipped in by gifting him a computer to produce his earliest work.

When MTV’s reality series “Pimp My Ride” first hit the airwaves back in 2004. Over the course of its six seasons, this series would go onto become one of the most popular properties in MTV history. The basic premise was this: a young person living in the greater Los Angeles area would videotape a plea for MTV to “pimp their ride”, whereupon the show’s loveable host, rapper Xzibit, would surprise them at their home and take their car to a talented team of car restorers, only to return the vehicle with some of the most outrageous personalized modifications you’ve ever seen. But alas, all good things must inevitably come to an end. By 2007, the reality car bubble had popped, so MTV pulled the plug. But this series absolutely refuses to go gently into that good night – Why? Well, it turns out that according to a number of the former contestants on the show, it was almost entirely faked. Not only that but in perhaps the most surprising development of all, Xzibit, well, he’d go broke.

Dan Bilzerian is the 40-year-old son of an exiled Corporate Raider who has managed to transform himself into a kind of Bruce Wayne meets Hugh Hefner for the modern age of social media. Over the years, his ever-increasingly public profile has seen him grow more and more successful, and he recently launched his own cannabis company know as Ignite. But can Dan manage to juggle a daily schedule chock-full of poker, booze, and relationships with the high-intensity demands of running his own business? Well, you’re about to find out.

For those few of you who may not know her all that well, Mia made waves a number of years ago in the industry after appearing in a handful of different scenes, some of which sparked immense controversy due to the fact that she was recorded in a hijab, a performance that would lead to many people lobbing threats her way. Of course, this outrage only made Mia all the more famous, but after only a few months, she was ready to call it quits. In interviews she’s given since then, Mia has informed the world that she was only ever paid $12,000 for work that’s still bringing her former employers a whole ton of money. Since then, she’s bringing to light her experiences, including a lack of compensation and being coerced into unfavorable contracts and scenes that she didn’t necessarily want to be a part of. But now that she’s no longer part of the industry that made her a recognizable name, what exactly is Mia K up to? Well, you’re about to find out.