BigWalkDog

With a relentless flow, effortless charisma, and deep-bodied voice, BigWalkDog embodied the Southern trap style that dominated the early 2020s — a style he rode to international success as part of Gucci Mane’s New 1017. Several dozen singles preceded the rapper’s 2022 debut full-length, Trick City.
Debuting with the swaggering “Pull Up,” BigWalkDog’s ethos was clear from the start: head-nodding flows, cocky Southern vocals, and weighty 808-led beats. Through 2020, the rapper built a strong local fan base with a relentless chain of anthems: among the highlights were the unyielding “Vibes,” the piano-based banger “B.T.D.,” and the wordplay-heavy “Craig Daddy,” the latter of which brought in hundreds of thousands of views for the Mississippi MC. A tirade of further anthems in early 2021 (including the explosive “1382″) caught the attention of Southern legend Gucci Mane. Fleshing out his label’s roster with artists like Pooh Shiesty and Foogiano — dubbed the New 1017 — Gucci signed BigWalkDog to 1017 Records in May 2021. The two celebrated with the collaborative single “Poppin,” which soon racked up tens of millions of streams worldwide. Numerous singles and appearances on Gucci Mane tracks led up to the 2022 release of Trick City, BigWalkDog’s first album, which topped Billboard’s Heatseekers chart. ~ David Crone