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Brandon George Dickinson (born July 18, 1994), better known by his stage name Lil Bibby, is an American rapper and record executive. Beginning his career in 2011, Bibby released his debut mixtape in 2013, titled Free Crack. After signing with Kemosabe Records, he followed up the project with Free Crack 2 (2014) and Free Crack 3 (2015). In 2017, he eventually switched focus onto his own record label, Grade A Productions. Bibby would eventually sign fellow Chicago rapper and singer Juice Wrld and Australian rapper and singer the Kid Laroi to the label; both signed artists achieved success globally.

This article needs to be updated. (December 2020)

Lil Bibby
Lil Bibby performing in 2014
Background information
Birth name	Brandon George Dickinson[1]
Born	(1994-07-18) July 18, 1994 (age 28) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres	Hip hop drill trap
Occupation(s)	Rapper songwriter record executive audio engineer
Years active	2011–present
Labels	Grade A RCA Kemosabe[2]
Website	lilbibby.com

Career

2011–2013: Career beginnings and debut mixtape

In 2013, Lil Bibby released his official mixtape, titled Free Crack. He cited Drake and Jadakiss, as two of his favorite rappers. Vice stated that Bibby's first mixtape were cleared from its influences from both of these rappers.[3] The mixtape features guest appearances from these newcomers Lil Herb and King L, while the production was handled by Hit-Boy, Young Chop and The Olympicks, among others.[4] DJ Scream hosted this mixtape. The tape combines his distinctive gruff and imposing voice, along with a solid delivery and flow.[5] The music videos were released for tracks such as "How We Move" featuring King L, "Change", "Water" and "Tired of Talkin'".

2013–2015: 2014's Freshman Class, Free Crack 2 and Free Crack 3

In December 2013, in an interview with XXL, Bibby hinted that the next step for his career could be an EP.[6] In 2014, it was also stated, that the rapper Drake was a huge fan of Bibby and that they'd spoken in 2013, before the release of Bibby's debut mixtape. Bibby said it pushed him onto improve his debut release, adding the tracks "Water" and "Whole Crew".[6]

In January 2014, Bibby appeared on Sway's radio show Sway in the Morning. On the show he spoke about the success of his debut mixtape, and also dropped a live freestyle.[7] During the same month, Bibby also featured on New York's radio station, Hot 97.[8] During the same month, Bibby stated in his interview with Billboard, that he was working on material for an EP, but was waiting on a couple of features.[9] Bibby also appeared on the list of 2014's XXL Freshman Class.[10] He was the last person selected to the list, due to Young Thug's last minute cancellation.

In July 2014, he made his appearance on the songs, collaborating with a fellow rapper and a Memphis-native Juicy J, and was featured on the remix to "Main Chick" performed by Kid Ink.[11][12] After a few delays, Bibby's sophomore mixtape, Free Crack 2, was released on August 29, 2014. Free Crack 2, which was hosted by DJ Drama, includes guest appearances from Lil Herb, Wiz Khalifa, Juicy J, Kevin Gates, Jadakiss and Anthony Hamilton, among others. The mixtape has production from Juicy J, Honorable C.N.O.T.E., Sonny Digital and DJ Pain 1, among others. The mixtape was released for free digital download and rapidly accumulated over 120,000 downloads.[13]

Free Crack 2 was received with critical acclaim. XXL magazine awarded the mixtape an XL, praising the mixtape's authenticity, catchy hooks and production, while also commenting that the mixtape showcases Bibby's "growth as an artist."[14] RedEye awarded the mixtape three stars out of four, commenting on the tape's maturity and versatility and praising the ability of the song 'Dead or in Prison' to let Bibby's "emotion and natural charisma do the heavy lifting."[15] BET gave the mixtape a positive review, awarding it five stars while commenting on its "new level of depth and introspection, detailing the difficult balance of fame and authenticity and how that effects everyday life in some of America's urban war zones."[16]

2015–2016: FC3 the Epilogue & Free Crack 4

In 2015, Bibby released two singles "Ridah" and "Aww Man" for an upcoming album, supposedly the fourth installment in his Free Crack series.[17] In late 2016, Bibby released "Thought It Was A Drought" and this was produced by DJ L Beats and Roberto Mario.[18] After a long period with no music, in early 2018, Bibby began using the hashtag "Free Bibby" on social media, protesting his label's refusal to allow him to release the project.[19]

2017–present: Grade A Productions, Juice WRLD, and The Kid LAROI

Bibby and his brother G-Money decided to launch their own record label known as Grade A Productions. In an interview with XXL, Bibby discussed his transition from being a rapper to starting a record label:

"I really don't know. I like to make people a lot of money. I got enough knowledge and I've studied this rap stuff and I got enough relationships to help an artist, help his family [and] I get a kick out of it 'cause I see how the label does it and my situation. I feel like just helping people."[20]

In 2017, they discovered then upcoming American rapper Juice WRLD after hearing his song "Lucid Dreams". Under the label, Juice WRLD released his debut studio album Goodbye and Good Riddance on May 23, 2018, which was followed by 3 singles "All Girls Are The Same", "Lucid Dreams", and "Lean Wit Me". On March 8, 2019, he released his second studio album Death Race for Love which was followed by 2 singles "Robbery", and "Hear Me Calling". On December 8, 2019, Juice suffered from an overdose at an airport in Chicago which lead to his unexpected passing. On January 22, 2020, Grade A announced that posthumous projects from Juice will be released to honor his legacy. His first posthumous album Legends Never Die was released on July 10, 2020, which was followed by 3 singles "Righteous", "Tell Me U Luv Me" featuring Trippie Redd, and "Life's A Mess" featuring Halsey. Most recently his Second Post-Humous album Fighting Demons released December 10, 2021. Throughout 2020, other posthumous releases included "Smile" with The Weeknd, "Real Shit" with Benny Blanco, "Reminds Me Of You" by The Kid LAROI featuring Juice WRLD in 2020, and recently "Bad Boy" with Young Thug in 2021.^{[citation needed]}

In 2019, Bibby later discovered upcoming Australian rapper and singer The Kid LAROI after hearing his song "Blessings" from his debut EP 14 With A Dream. In March, Bibby signed Laroi to Grade A. Under the label, Laroi released his debut mixtape F*CK LOVE on July 24 which was followed by 2 singles "GO" featuring Juice WRLD, which was a posthumous verse due to his sudden death in December 2019, and "TELL ME WHY". On November 6, Laroi released a deluxe edition of F*ck Love titled F*ck Love (SAVAGE) which was followed by 1 single "SO DONE".^{[citation needed]}

Grade A Productions

Grade A Productions
Founded	2017
Founder	Lil Bibby
Status	Active
Distributor(s)	Various
Genre	Hip hop emo rap

Grade A Productions is a record label founded by Lil Bibby in 2017. According to Bibby, when opening the label, he stated during an XXL interview that:

"I really don't know. I like to make people a lot of money. I got enough knowledge and I've studied this rap stuff and I got enough relationships to help an artist, help his family [and] I get a kick out of it 'cause I see how the label does it and my situation. I feel like just helping people."

The label is home to well known artists such as Juice WRLD, and The Kid LAROI.

Roster

Act	Year signed	Releases	Notes
Juice WRLD	2018	4 (2 posthumous)	In a joint deal with Interscope Records; deceased – died from overdose in December 2019.
The Kid LAROI	2019	2 (1 extended play)	In a joint deal with Columbia Records. (The Kid LAROI left Grade A Productions on Friday, June 4, 2021, signing with manager Scooter Braun)[21]
Zzz.	2022	1	In a joint deal with Warner Records

Discography

Year	Album details	Details
2018	Juice WRLD – Goodbye & Good Riddance Released: December 10, 2018 Label: Grade A Productions, Interscope Records Formats: Vinyl, Streaming, Digital download	US Chart position: 4 RIAA certification: Platinum
2019	Juice WRLD – Death Race for Love Released: March 8, 2019 Label: Grade A Productions, Interscope Records Formats: CD, Streaming, Digital download	Chart position: 1 RIAA certification: Gold
	Clever – Who is Clever? Released: October 11, 2019 Label: Grade A Productions, The Dispensary Formats: Streaming, Digital download	Chart position: N/A RIAA certification: Uncertified
2020	Seezyn – Tis Released: January 30, 2020 Label: Kult Life Records, Grade A Productions Formats: Streaming, Digital download	Chart position: N/A RIAA certification: Uncertified
	The Kid LAROI – F*ck Love Released: July 24, 2020 Label: Grade A Productions, Columbia Records Formats: Streaming, Digital download	Chart position: 1 RIAA certification: Platinum
	Juice WRLD – Legends Never Die[22] Released: July 10, 2020 Label: Grade A Productions, Interscope Records Formats: CD, Streaming, Digital download	Chart position: 1 RIAA certification: Platinum
2021	Clever – Crazy[23] Released: March 12, 2021 Label: Grade A Productions, Republic Records Formats: Streaming, Digital download	Chart position: 1 RIAA certification: Uncertified
2021	Juice WRLD – Fighting Demons	Released December 10, 2021

Discography

Extended plays

List of Extended plays, with selected chart positions and sales figures

Title	Album details
Big Buckz[24]	Released: August 22, 2016 Label: Grade A Productions Format: Digital download
FC3: The Epilogue[25]	Released: March 8, 2017 (2017-03-08) Label: Kemosabe Records Format: Digital download

Mixtapes

List of mixtapes, with year released

Title	Mixtape details
Free Crack[26]	Released: November 29, 2013 Label: Grade A Productions Format: Digital download
Free Crack 2[27]	Released: August 29, 2014 Label: Grade A Productions Format: Digital download
Free Crack 3[28]	Released: November 27, 2015 Label: Grade A Productions Format: Digital download

Singles

As lead artist

List of singles, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Album
"Know That"	2013	Non-album singles
"For The Low"
"Doin Hits"
"How We Move" (featuring King L)		Free Crack
"Stressin'"
"Tired of Talkin"	2014
"Dead or in Prison"[29]		Free Crack 2
"Sumn" (featuring Blac Youngsta)	2017	Non-album singles
"Complicated" (featuring Ann Marie)

As featured artist

List of singles as featured performer, with selected chart positions, showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Peak chart positions			Album
		US R&B/HH [30]	US R&B/HH Air. [31]	US Main. R&B/HH [32]
"Ex Bitch" (N-Tune featuring Lil Bibby)	2013	—	—	—	Non-album singles
"Crazy" (Gianni Blu featuring King L, EMP Dasme and Lil Bibby)		—	—	—
"Main Chick" (Remix) (Kid Ink featuring Chris Brown, French Montana, Yo Gotti, Tyga and Lil Bibby)[33]	2014	—	—	—
"Low" (Juicy J featuring Nicki Minaj, Lil Bibby and Young Thug)		44	45	29
"Proud of Me Now" (A Boogie wit da Hoodie featuring Lil Bibby)[34]	2016	—	—	—
"—" denotes a title that did not chart, or was not released in that territory.

Guest appearances

List of non-single guest appearances, with other performing artists, showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Other artist(s)	Album
"Flexing Finessing"	2012	Fredo Santana, Lil Herb	It's a Scary Site
"How We Move"	2013	King L	March Madness
"Fuck for Fame"		Lil Durk, Boss Top	—
"Knock a Hoe"		Katie Got Bandz, Dreezy, Lil Herb	Drillary Clinton
"Do It Like I Do"		YP	Restless
"Kilo"		Tink, Lil Herb	Boss Up
"All I Got"	2014	Lil Herb	Welcome to Fazoland
"At Night"			Welcome to Fazoland (No DJ Version)
"Holy Ghost"		Juicy J	Pure THC: The Hustle Continues
"Love Me Freestyle"		Lil Reese	We Are Chiraq Volume 1
"All I Need"		Kid Ink, Shitty Montana	4B's
"Mechanical Animals"		Saigon, Memphis Bleek, Kool G Rap	Greatest Story Never Told 3: The Troubled Times of Brian Carenard
"Never Changed"	2015	Yo Gotti	Concealed
"Faneto" (Remix)		Chief Keef, Lil Herb, King L	—
"Doin Me"		Trae tha Truth, Nipsey Hussle	Tha Truth
"Mirror"	2017	G Herbo	Humble Beast
"Musty"		Chief Keef, Ballout	The W
"Tommy & Ghost"	2019	The Plug, 67	Plug Talk

References

External links

• Lil Bibby Mixtapes

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