Chief Keef

Early life, family and education

Keith Farrelle Cozart was born in Chicago, Illinois, on August 15, 1995, to Lolita Carter (born c. 1980) who was unwed. He is named after his deceased uncle, Keith Carter, who was known as Big Keef. He lived at the Parkway Garden Homes located in the Washington Park neighborhood on the city's South Side, a stronghold for the Black Disciples street gang of which Chief Keef is a member. Sociologist R. L'Heureux Lewis-McCoy described Chief Keef's mentality as a member, "Chicago’s Black Disciples is central to who he is and who he should be".

Chief Keef has been estranged from his biological father, Alfonso Cozart, since he was a year old. His legal guardian was his grandmother, Margaret Carter with whom he lived in Chicago. She worked as a school bus driver. He began rapping as a five-year-old using his mother's karaoke machine and tapes to record his music. During his childhood, Chief Keef attended Dulles Elementary School and Dyett High School, dropping out of the latter in his freshman year.

Career

Early years, Finally Rich, and subsequent mixtapes (2011–2013)

Chief Keef started rapping in 2008 and released his debut mixtape, UF Overload, in 2009. In 2011, he first attracted local attention from Chicago's South Side community with his mixtapes, The Glory Road and Bang. In December, he was arrested for firing a gun from his car in Chicago's Washington Park neighborhood; he was placed under house arrest at his grandmother's residence for 30 days, followed by another 30 days of home confinement. While under house arrest, he posted several videos to his YouTube account, forerunners to Chicago's hip hop subgenre, drill.

Chief Keef met Japanese immigrant producer, DJ Kenn, through his uncle. DJ Kenn worked with Chief Keef on many of his earliest songs, and was involved with the 'Glory Boys Entertainment' (GBE) collective.

Keef's song "I Don't Like" became a hit in Chicago. A local party promoter called it "the perfect Chicago song because 'niggas just hate everything out here'". It caught Kanye West's attention, and he remixed the song with rappers Pusha T, Jadakiss and Big Sean. As a result, Keef "suddenly shot up out of obscurity".

In the summer of 2012, Chief Keef was the subject of a bidding war among record labels wishing to sign him, including Young Jeezy's CTE World. While 2012 proved to be a relatively quiet year in terms of his musical output, Chief Keef began the year by signing with Interscope Records. In a separate deal, he was promised his own label imprint, Glory Boyz Entertainment (GBE). The deal was worth $6,000,000 over a three album layout, with an additional $440,000 advance to establish GBE.

The deal gave Interscope the right to pull out of the contract if Chief Keef's debut album Finally Rich, released on December 18, 2012, had failed to sell 250,000 copies by December 2013. Featured guests on the album include rappers: 50 Cent, Wiz Khalifa, Young Jeezy, Rick Ross and his fellow Glory Boyz member Lil Reese. In May 2013 he signed with 1017 Brick Squad Records.

Chief Keef is featured on "Hold My Liquor", the fifth track on Kanye West's album, Yeezus, released on June 18, 2013. Keef's contributions to the track were praised by musician Lou Reed who said, "'Hold My Liquor' is just heartbreaking, and particularly coming from where it's coming from – listen to that incredibly poignant hook from a tough guy like Chief Keef, wow."

Nobody and Bang 3 (2014–2016)

Chief Keef began experimenting with producing his music in 2014. Meaghan Garvey of The Fader noted this was fitting as the rapper has "always been more concerned with vibe than meaning, and production is his most efficient tool to create a mood without getting bogged down by pesky syntax." In January, Chief Keef announced he was working on a new mixtape, Bang 3. In February, he unveiled the cover art to his upcoming mixtape, Back From The Dead 2, the sequel to his critically acclaimed mixtape, Back From The Dead. During February, Chief Keef said his former lean addiction and bad mixing contributed to the lack of quality music on his two mixtape projects Bang Pt. 2 and Almighty So and that he was disappointed in both projects.

Later in February 2014, he announced an EP, Bang 4, before his second studio album Bang 3, as a preview. The following day, Fredo Santana announced he and Chief Keef were going to release an album collaboration. In March, Keef released "Fuck Rehab", the first official single from Bang 3,?featuring his fellow Glo Gang artist and cousin Mario "Blood Money" Hess. This marked Hess's final recording before his death on April 9, 2014. On March 14 Chief Keef released the official music video for "Fuck Rehab". Although Interscope executive Larry Jackson announced that Bang 3 would be released on June 10, it was delayed again.

In October 2014, Chief Keef was dropped by Interscope Records. He confirmed via Twitter that every project he had planned, including the release of the long-awaited Bang 3, would still be released. Young Chop criticized Interscope's decision to drop Chief Keef. Despite being set for a December 2014 release, Bang 3 did not materialize. Chief Keef's mixtapes, Mansion Musick set for a November 28 release, and Thot Breakers set to release on February 14, 2015, were not released as announced. However, he was successful in releasing Big Gucci Sosa, a 12-track collaborative mixtape, with Gucci Mane, as well as Back from the Dead 2, which was made available for digital download from iTunes.

Chief Keef self-produced 16 of the 20 songs on the mixtape. David Drake of Pitchfork Media said, "For his first steps into the rapper-producer territory, he shows promise—though it's tough to imagine most of these beats working outside the context of a Chief Keef album, as they are primed to frame his vocals." Rolling Stone ranked the mixtape 25th on its list of the 40 best rap albums of 2014 commenting, "The bleak world from which he came still shapes his sound; it's a bleak and lonely record, with few guests and a darkly psychedelic shape formed by drugs and likely PTSD. Yet he finds a gleeful humanity inside the world's rotten core, with bluntly potent, economical rapping that gets strong mileage per word."

Dedication, Glotoven and Almighty So 2 (since 2016)

In March 2016, Chief Keef tweeted that he was retiring from rapping. The announcement came as his recorded output was slowing down. However, later in the year he was featured on MGK's song, "Young Man". He also released a 17-track mixtape Two Zero One Seven in January 2017. Chief Keef joined a long line of rappers, including Jay-Z, Lupe Fiasco, Nicki Minaj and others, who claimed to have retired only to return to making music.

Chief Keef released four mixtapes in the lead up to releasing his third album, Dedication, on December 1, 2017. The Guardian called Dedication his "most satisfying album to date".

In 2018, Chief Keef was able to drop more mixtapes, such as Mansion Musick and Back from the Dead 3 and more mixtapes in The Leek series. He also did more features for musicians such as Playboi Carti, Soulja Boy, and G Herbo. Chief Keef also worked alongside Trippie Redd due to the feud he had with 6ix9ine.

In early 2019, Chief Keef and Zaytoven worked together in the studio. Chief Keef later confirmed they were making a collaborative mixtape called Glotoven. It was released on March 15, 2019, and was supported by the single "Spy Kid". On April 20, 2019, Chief Keef revealed he had another mixtape planned, dubbed Almighty So 2. He then released a song with Youngboy Never Broke Again called "Fireman". The mixtape is also scheduled to have features from Lil Uzi Vert, Soulja Boy and Lil Reese, among others. Chief Keef also released another single titled "Boost".

In March 2020, Chief Keef earned his first major production credit on Lil Uzi Vert's second studio album, Eternal Atake, with the song "Chrome Heart Tags". Chief Keef was later featured on Uzi's album Lil Uzi Vert vs. the World 2 with a vocal performance on the song "Bean (Kobe)", which became his highest-charting song on the Hot 100 at number 19. In 2026, he was featured on a remix of Katy Perry's 2013 song "Legendary Lovers", which Keef had sampled in his 2014 song "Save Me". He released his mixtape Skeletor in April 2026. He is scheduled to embark on a tour in support of the mixtape in the autumn of 2026.

Other ventures

Glo Gang

As part of his contract with Interscope Records, Chief Keef's label imprint, Glory Boyz Entertainment (GBE), was established. He and his manager, Rovan Manuel, each owned 40% of GBE's shares. Chief Keef's cousin and fellow rapper, Fredo Santana, his uncle Alonzo Carter, and Anthony H. Dade, owned the remaining 20% of GBE. Various associates would be signed with the label, such as rappers Lil Reese, Fredo Santana and producer Young Chop.

The label had been active since 2011 but had only released mixtapes and was not a fully functioning record company. After releasing Chief Keef's Finally Rich in December 2012, the label was set to release an album by Lil Reese in the following months, along with various mixtapes. However, on January 3, 2014, Chief Keef said that Glory Boyz Entertainment was "no more", and he was starting a new record label named Glo Gang. Prior to his death, Blood Money revealed in an interview the members of Glo Gang were Chief Keef, Tray Savage, Ballout, Capo, Tadoe, JusGlo, and himself.

Chief Keef

Tadoe

Ballout

DooWop

Lil Flash

Benji Flo

Terintino

JusGlo

SmokeCamp Chino

Lil Reese

Lucki

Tray Savage (deceased)

Fredo Santana (deceased)

Gino Marley

Capo (deceased)

Blood Money (deceased)

SD

Snap Dogg

43B

Announced on June 6, 2022, through a partnership with RBC Records and BMG Rights Management, Chief Keef announced the founding of 43B, otherwise known as Forget Everybody, and its first signee, Lil Gnar.

"43B has been a passion project of mine for over a year and I’m ready to give artists that are changing the game a label where they can really succeed, I’ve been independent for almost 10 years, so I want to pass on my knowledge of the industry to artists who are shifting the culture so they can make it to the top."

Personal life

At the age of 16, Chief Keef had his first child, a daughter. In November 2013, DNA documents revealed that he had fathered a 10-month-old daughter to a woman two decades older than him. Chief Keef was subsequently ordered to begin paying child support to her mother. In September 2014, Chief Keef announced the birth of his third child, who was his first son.

In May 2015, he was sued by another woman who claimed he is the father of her child. Since he had failed to respond to the legal documents with which he was served, he was ordered to appear in court. After failing to do so, a bench warrant was issued for his arrest. Despite these issues, LA Weekly reported that at least on Instagram Chief Keef "appears to take fatherhood seriously."

On September 15, 2012, Chief Keef uploaded a photograph of him receiving fellatio from a female fan onto Instagram, which he removed shortly afterwards. However, his account was subsequently banned for violating Instagram's terms of service. He has since created another Instagram account, and has had his activities on the app mentioned by various outlets.

In August 2015, he caused a controversy after naming his newborn son Sno "FilmOn Dot Com", inspired by his record label, FilmOn Music, to promote his album Bang 3. Following a dispute over the child's paternity, FilmOn Music retracted the name until the matter is settled.

Two of his cousins, Fredo Santana and Tadoe, were signed to his Glory Boyz Entertainment label. His step-brother was shot dead on January 2, 2013. Another of his cousins, Mario Hess, also known as Big Glo, who performed under the stage name Blood Money, was shot and killed in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood on April 9, 2014. Hess had been signed to Interscope Records just two weeks prior to his killing. In an interview with Billboard, Chief Keef explained how Big Glo's death influenced his life saying, "When that happened that was the biggest lesson. It told me 'You gotta grow up.'"

After being evicted from his Highland Park home in June 2014, he relocated to Los Angeles. In an interview with Noisey's Rebecca Haithcoat, Chief Keef told her his favorite part about Los Angeles is "the quiet". After moving to Los Angeles, he began indulging in his new-found hobby of art collecting, once he discovered the paintings of art teacher Bill da Butcher while in rehab. Once acquainted, da Butcher began working on paintings personally meant for Chief Keef. He believed that his move to Los Angeles benefited him; in an interview with Billboard, he said: "I got away from all the unnecessary trouble. It's better out here [in L.A.] than in Chicago, because I got in so much trouble. I like living out here. I think it improved me. It changed me, and [inspired] me to go somewhere bigger."

Legal issues

On January 27, 2011, Chief Keef was apprehended on charges of heroin manufacture and distribution. As a juvenile offender, he was determined to be a "delinquent", rather than guilty of his charges, and served time under house arrest. In December 2011, he left his grandmother's home holding a coat over his hands in front of his waistband. A policeman stopped to question the rapper. He dropped the coat, flashed a handgun and ran away.

Officers chased the then-16-year-old Chief Keef, who turned around several times and pointed the gun at them. The policemen "discharged their weapons" but missed. They caught him and recovered the loaded pistol. Chief Keef was charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a firearm on a police officer and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. He was also given a misdemeanor charge for resisting arrest. He was held in the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center for four weeks until a judge sentenced him to house arrest at his grandmother's house.

On September 5, 2012, Chicago Police stated Chief Keef was being investigated for a possible connection to the shooting death of fellow rapper and Englewood resident, Joseph Coleman, who performed under the stage name "Lil JoJo". This began after Chief Keef had mocked his death on Twitter, which he later claimed was the result of his account being hacked. Coleman's mother has openly maintained Chief Keef paid to have her son killed.

Cook County prosecutors asked a judge to remand him to juvenile detention for alleged parole violations on October 17, 2012. This was in response to a video interview he held at a shooting range which included footage of him discharging a firearm. A hearing was set for November 20, 2012, which was subsequently delayed and moved up to January 15, 2013. The court ordered Pitchfork Media, which had posted the now removed video, to provide the interview's footage.

On December 31, 2012, Chief Keef was issued a judicial summons for a new and unrelated alleged parole violation. Prosecutors claimed he failed to notify his juvenile parole officer of a change of address. A hearing was set for January 2, 2013. Although prosecutors requested that he be jailed, Cook County judge Carl Anthony Walker allowed him to remain free, saying he had not been presented with "any credible evidence" to warrant incarceration.

Image

Chief Keef is often seen as a representation of the "Chiraq" gangsta rap culture that is present in Chicago. He often refers to himself as "Sosa" as do his peers and the media. The nickname "Sosa" is a reference to Alejandro Sosa, the drug kingpin in the movie Scarface. LA Weekly reported that Chief Keef's Glo Gang entourage respects the rapper. One member of the Glo Gang, Ballout, stated, "We learned all that from Sosa, we be in the studio with him so much", calling him, "a rhyming machine. A music genius. Black Justin Bieber, if you ask me."

The New York Times stated that Chief Keef "symbolizes" Chicago's drill music scene and is the "best known of the young generation of Chicago rappers." In November 2012, Lucy Stehlik of The Guardian described Chief Keef as drill's "alpha male". David Drake of Pitchfork Media wrote, "Chief Keef is in rarefied air for street rap—a creative voice with an original, cohesive aesthetic", adding, "to the grassroots, among a new generation of stars, he sits at street rap's aesthetic center, not its margins."

A New York Times article compared Chief Keef to 50 Cent, noting that, like him, Chief Keef makes thuggery, "a major part of his early-career persona." Lupe Fiasco, who has been involved in a controversy with him, has been referred to as an "antagonist" to Chief Keef's more gangsta-rap persona. The New York Times writes, "Lupe Fiasco is a stern and didactic teacher, but it's arguable that Chief Keef's music is far better at ringing warning bells." Another rapper, Common, has praised his contributions to rap saying, "I think Chief Keef brought something that nobody else was doing and he brought it raw. He brought it real. With that, I have to respect that as an artist that he has come and brought that."

Other rappers, such as Rhymefest and Lupe Fiasco, however, have been critical of Chief Keef. In June 2012, Rhymefest authored a blog post critical of his image and message, describing him as a "bomb" and a "spokesman for the Prison Industrial Complex". The post was also critical of rappers Waka Flocka Flame and Rick Ross, citing similar issues. Rhymefest reiterated these views in a subsequent interview with Salon. Lupe Fiasco's criticisms of Keef touched off a feud between the two.

Legacy

Many publications have referred to Chief Keef as an influential figure in contemporary hip-hop, for both his musical style and gangster image. His melodic style of rapping and his characteristically slurred delivery of lyrics has been called the catalyst for the success of Chicago drill and mumble rap, and an influence on fellow rappers such as 21 Savage, YoungBoy Never Broke Again, Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, Lil Pump, XXXTentacion, Ski Mask the Slump God, Trippie Redd, Juice Wrld, Polo G, and Tay-K, among others, as well as pop artists Doja Cat and Billie Eilish. Additionally, Chief Keef's heavy use of adlibs, specifically the word "aye" as a large part of a song was a major influence on the Soundcloud rap subgenre and the artists that emerged from it. Rolling Stone has credited Cozart with "personif[ying] Chicago drill", while Stereogum referred to him as a "modern rap folk hero".

In 2023, boxer Gervonta Davis walked out with Chief Keef to his song "Love Sosa' for his fight against Ryan Garcia.

Chief Keef is credited with popularizing the phrases "glow up" and "smoking [opps]", although the lyrical origin of the latter can be traced back to fellow Chicago drill rapper RondoNumbaNine in his 2013 song "Hang Wit Me". Additionally, Chief Keef popularized the slang term "thot".

Chief Keef is one of the most prominent Black Disciples members of his generation.

Hip hop feuds

In an August 2012 interview with Baltimore radio station 92Q Jams (WERQ-FM), Lupe Fiasco stated that Chief Keef "scares" him and described him as a "hoodlum" and a representative of Chicago's "skyrocketing" murder rate. A tweet from Chief Keef's account threatening Fiasco was posted on September 5. Chief Keef claimed that his account had been hacked and the tweet was not his. On September 13, 2012, Fiasco released a video interview in which he made amends to Chief Keef.

In November 2014, rap group Migos and Glo Gang member, Capo, were involved in a physical altercation in a Chicago restaurant. Later, Chief Keef uploaded an image onto Instagram featuring an alleged stolen chain belonging to rapper Quavo of Migos. Though this incident escalated the already existing tension between the two groups' members, the feud seemingly ended.

Chief Keef was involved in a feud with rapper 6ix9ine in May 2018. This stemmed from Tadoe's domestic abuse and relationship issues relating to fellow rapper Cuban Doll. She was in a relationship with Tadoe but also friendly with 6ix9ine. 6ix9ine then dissed Chief Keef and rapper Lil Reese on social media posting a video of his semi-romantic vacation to Hawaii with Cuban Doll to Instagram, and driving up to Chief Keef's old neighborhood and taunting him. 6ix9ine also contacted Aereon Clark, known professionally as Slim Danger, the mother of one of Chief Keef's sons and recorded himself buying her designer clothes, verbally taunting Chief Keef and later receiving fellatio from her.

On May 8, 2018, Trippie Redd previewed the song "I Kill People" on Instagram, featuring Chief Keef and Tadoe, which was aimed as a diss toward 6ix9ine and Cuban Doll. On June 2, 2018, Chief Keef was fired upon outside the W Hotel in New York City. He was not hit and there were no injuries from the incident. Due to the ongoing feud, 6ix9ine was confirmed to be under investigation by the New York Police Department for possible involvement in the incident despite being in Los Angeles at the time. In February 2019, 6ix9ine pleaded guilty to ordering the shooting of Chief Keef. He had offered his associate Kintea "Kooda B" McKenzie $20,000 to shoot at Cozart. 6ix9ine was later found to be an informant for the U.S. Government helping to lock up Kooda B, and his manager Kifano "Shotti" Jordan.

Discography

Solo studio albums

Finally Rich (2012)

Bang 3 (2015)

Dedication (2017)

4Nem (2021)

Almighty So 2 (2024)

Skeletor (2026)

Collaborative albums

Nobody (with 12Hunna) (2014)