Singer/songwriter Yeat has taken the mainstream rap scene by storm. The 22-year-old from Irvine, California has exploded in popularity over the past couple of months, maintaining over 10 million followers on the popular music app Spotify, a shock compared to 300,000 a year ago.

Yeat has been rapping since 2015, and possesses a unique music style that excites a cult following amongst fans. The artist has a long and interesting history as to how he rose to become one of the top artists of 2022. 

Born as Noah Oliver Smith on Feb. 6, 2000, Smith began his music career in 2015 at the age of 15 under the name of Lil Yeat.

“My early s— was trash,” Smith said during an interview with Our Generation Music. “I was just a kid trying it”. 

Smith experimented with his style for a few years, first releasing a mixtape titled “Deep Blue Strips” on Sept. 20, 2018 under his current name as Yeat. He shortly after uploaded a music video for the track “Stay Up” from the mixtape to YouTube on Feb. 21, 2022. The video as of now has reached 570,000 views. Following this release, he began to premiere more of his songs on YouTube.

Smith’s viral success first became evident after the release of his mixtape “4L,” which dropped on July 11, 2021. 

“I put ‘4L’ together like the night before I put it in,” Smith said, in the same interview with Our Generation Music. “I was just laying down geeked up. I’mma put this there, this here, just did it hella fast”. 

Tracks from the new mixtape began being used by users on the social media app TikTok. The singles “Money Twërk,” and “Sorry Bout That” received the most playtime, with over 250,000 videos containing either of the tracks. Users began creating remixes of the tracks as well, including sped up versions and different pitches which also went viral. 

Smith would crack the Billboard 200 with his first studio album, “Up 2 Më.” Released on Sept. 10, 2021, the album would go on to be supported by strong singles such as “Gët Busy,” “Monëy So Big,” and “Turban.” As with “4L,” tracks from “Up 2 Më” also received heavy airplay on TikTok. 

“I feel like it’s just up to me, to go out,” Smith said, after being asked as to why the album was to be titled “Up 2 Më.” 

Another album would come shortly after, “2 Alivë,” being released on Feb. 18, 2022. It peaked at #6 on the Billboard 200, Smith’s first-ever top-10 album. As with previous projects, the main single, “Still Countin,” was supported by the viral gains it received from the TikTok community. 

Smith at this point had become a sensation overnight. In less than a year, he had gone from being a small-time underground artist, to one of the most prominent names in the hiphop industry. Many would be overjoyed by this; Smith on the other hand thinks otherwise.

“I don’t like clout,” Smith said during a Channel 5 interview. “I just be in the house all day. I don’t even leave my house.” 

Despite his preference to being an introvert, Smith continues to tour and make music. His recently dropped EP “Lyfë” has had 30,000 sales within its first week, and once again debuted on the Billboard 200 at #10. The future is certainly bright for him, with no fall off predicted to occur anytime soon.