Rising King: TYGA celebrates his latest release at The Omni Friday

Listen Up Toledo  |  03/07/2012 7:00 am

TYGA swings back through Toledo this weekend, bringing a pop edge to underground rap with him.

Born and raised in the infamous Compton, CA neighborhood, TYGA took a shine from an early age to hip-hop, creating a buzz through local live shows and a loosely put together mixtape. But then fate came shining. As the story goes, TYGA hit up Travis McCoy of Gym Class Heroes during a chance conversation while shoe shopping in LA. He handed off his mixtape, and soon enough was the opening act on the GCH tour, which eventually landed him a spot at the MTV Music Awards, where he met Lil' Wayne.

From there, TYGA hasn't quite looked back, though he's stayed grounded. His debut album, 2008's No Introduction, built on an impressive cult following, solidifying him as an up-n-comer in the rap game, especially after collaborations with Weezy and Chris Brown; one of which, the song “Deuces,” earned TYGA an 2011 Grammy nod for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

The rapper broke strong into 2012 with the release of his sophomore effort, Careless World: Rise of the Last King. Released just a few weeks ago in February, the album was released through Young Money, Cash Money Records, and features production from genre heavyweights like Pharrell Williams and Noah “40” Shebib, and collabs from the likes of Drake and Lil' Wayne. Despite positive reception, the album has experienced some delays and shelf-pulls based on a number of copyright and appropriate crediting issues.

Nonetheless, TYGA is a fast up-and-coming hip-hop star, who's dropped an impressive number of mixtapes at this point, on top of his successful recording career. With one foot in the business, and the other firmly planted in his roots and love of the craft, TYGA is poised to do bigger, and better things.

Tyga plays the Omni, 2567 W. Bancroft, on Friday, March 9. 8 p.m. $25 advance, $28 at the door. Concert presented by Verso Group. www.omnimidwest.com