Toosii

North Carolina rapper Toosii quickly developed his craft in the late 2000s, going from uploading songs online to signing with the label that helped DaBaby break through worldwide. His lyrics often draw on more intimate details of his personal life than standard rap fare, and he delivers them with a melodic sensibility on charting projects like 2020′s Poetic Pain and 2021′s Thank You for Believing.
Toosii (sometimes known as King Toosii) was born Nau’Jour Grainger in 2000. He grew up in Syracuse, New York, but relocated to Raleigh when he began taking music more seriously in 2017. After posting various projects online, he released the Why Not Now EP, a collection that saw his melodic, autobiographical style solidifying. By this point, Toosii had generated enough buzz through both his music and a large social media following to attract the attention of the South Coast Music Group. He signed with the label and released the 2019 mixtape Who Dat, following it early the next year with Platinum Heart (February 2020). A consolidation of the rapper’s infectious melodic style, the project was bolstered by a deluxe edition in May 2020, with seven new tracks and a fully reordered track listing. Just a few months later, Toosii issued the Poetic Pain LP, which featured collaborations with Summer Walker and Lil Durk. The album reached number 17 on the Billboard 200. He rounded out the year with the EPs Big Steppa and Dickpressed. Thank You for Believing, with guest appearances by DaBaby and Key Glock, appeared in May 2021, charting at number 25. Toosii kicked off 2022 with the single “Love Is…,” which reached number 33 on the Billboard Hot R&B Songs chart. ~ Fred Thomas