Revisiting XXL Freshmen of the Past | 2018’s Freshmen Class – Where Are They Now?

Revisiting The XXL 2018 Freshmen Class
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The XXL freshman class of 2018 started out hot and heavy with majority of the artists releasing at least one well know song in 2017 or 2018. While some may have fell off a bit, all of them are continuing their craft and still making music to some degree. Here’s your chance to catch up on the XXL 2018 Freshman Class.

As done before with other XXL Freshmen covers of 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017, let’s find out what’s going on with the XXL 2018 Freshmen and see just how far they’ve come.

2018 was the first freshman class that didn’t have at least 10 artists.

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Revisiting The XXL 2018 Freshmen

Ski Mask the Slump God

 

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Ski Mask the Slump God started as a SoundCloud rapper in 2015. His single “Catch Me Outside” got millions of plays when it came out. After creating multiple hits including, “New World Order” with other famous rappers such as Lil Tracy and Lil Peep, he was able to get signed to Republic Records. He then made two mixtapes that also gained lots of traction pushing fans to believe that he would make it in mainstream music.

Where is he now?

Ski Mask released “Burn the Hoods” in 2020. It was supposed to be a direct shot at Donald Trump and white supremacists, as the rapper said he originally wanted to name the track “F** Donald Trump.” However, he ended up changing the name to “Burn the Hoods” as a reference to the KKK because he knew Trump would have his PR team take it down (Complex). At the end of 2020, Ski Mask went on hiatus due to the death of his two friends Juice Wrld and XXXTentacion.

In 2021, he released multiple songs that got millions of streams each. Some of these songs include “Dr. Seuss” and “The Matrix.” He released songs sporadically in 2022 and 2023, but came back with an EP in 2024. The project, titled, 11th Dimension came out on June 7, 2024 under Republic Records with four songs. However, these did not get the same attention his older songs did.

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Fans were angry about show cancellations in Sydney and Toronto. Fortunately, according to his Instagram, he was later able to join fellow musician Don Toliver on his tour performance at the Barclay’s Center in November of 2024. 


Lil Pump

 

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From Miami, Florida, Lil Pump, who uses the pronouns “They/Them” started rapping at 15 after being influenced by rappers such as Chief Keef. They started on SoundCloud in 2016 rapping over beats their friend Smokepurpp made. Later that next year, they dropped “Gucci Gang” (2017), which became their first main stream song.

Where is he now?

In 2021, Lil Pump released No Name under the label “The Lights Global” with fellow rapper Ronny J, but this didn’t get nearly as much attention as “Gucci Gang” did in 2017. The rapper then released Lil Pump 2 in 2023 which did better, but again just didn’t get the same amount of traction as their earlier projects. Fortunately, they are still dropping tracks for an active fanbase.

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In other news, according to Lil Pump’s Instagram, their grandmother’s 90th birthday passed in late December of 2024. To honor this special occasion, they gave her a live performance of their viral song “Gucci Gang” which got mixed reactions from fans in his comments. 


Smokepurpp

 

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Smokepurpp and Lil Pump came up together. While Lil Pump was more into freestyle rapping, Smokepurpp started out making beats and producing. However, he later started rapping as well, having released two songs on SoundCloud by 2014, one with his cousin, Lil Ominous, and one with XXXTentacion.

In 2017 he was signed to Alamo Records/Interscope Records. That same year he dropped “Audi,” which was a hit with over 122 million streams on Spotify. After that, he released multiple singles including “123” and “Do Not Disturb.” These also featured more well known artists such as Lil Durk and Offset from Migos.

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Where is he now?

In 2019, Smokepurpp released an EP called Lost Planet, which featured eight tracks. He again invited other well known rappers including Lil Pump, Gunna, and NLE Choppa. While it still got attention, it felt like he was still figuring things out. The songs were good, but he still hadn’t distinguished himself as an artist (Hip-Hop DX).

After this, his music became more sporadic. From 2022 and 2023 he dropped songs here and there such as “Gelato” (2020), “Redbull” (2023), and “Not Your Speed” (2021). While these releases didn’t get the same attention his earlier ones did, you can hear a slight switch in the sound and lyrics. While he still raps about partying and riches, he also speaks on more mature and personal subjects like mental health and his humble beginnings.


JID

 

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From Atlanta, Georgia, JID first released music in May of 2010, a mixtape called Cakewalk. He then put out two more in 2011 and 2012 titled Cakewalk 2 and Route of Evil. While these were his first releases and first collabs with fellow rapper EARTHGANG, he doesn’t talk about them, nor are they easy to find (Hip Hop Fandom). 

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In February 2017, JID was signed to Dreamville, J. Cole’s label. While he did release other music, his first real hit was The Never Story, an album that he released in March 2017. Some noteworthy tracks from the project include “Never” and “EdEddnEddy,” which both received millions of streams from fans. After that, he released Dicaprio 2 in 2018 with some noteworthy tracks being “Off Da Zoinkys” and “Off Deez” which features J. Cole.

Where is he now?

In 2022, JID released The Forever Story, which shows a growing maturity in his work. The album touches on topics including overcoming struggles, family, and growth, which shows a growing vulnerability in his lyrics. Some notable songs on this album are the viral “Surround Sound” which features 21 Savage and Baby Tate, and “Dance Now,” which has Kenny Mason. 

In 2024 he collaborated with Eminem on the song “Fuel,” receiving a great reaction from fans. The official audio has 20 million views on Youtube and over 92 million streams on Spotify. He released “31,” a freestyle later in the year.

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Stefflon Don

From London, Stefflon Don grew up in a Jamaican household. Unlike those who use SoundCloud, she used to upload her rapping onto YouTube which is where she gained her traction. Around 2015 is when she started getting attention.

In 2017, she came out with “16 Shots,” which really started to turn heads. It got so much attention that the YouTube channel 1 Million Studios based in Seoul, South Korea posted multiple choreography videos to the song.  After this, she dropped “Hurtin’ Me” with French Montana, which is arguably her most popular song, as it made charts in the UK.

Where is she now?

Stefflon Don still performs and releases music. In 2023, she dropped “What’s Poppin’” with BNXN which currently has over 15 million views on the music video and and 7.9 million streams on Spotify. She released her album Island 54 on June 28, of 2024 under BMG Rights Management. Some noteworthy songs from this album are “Dilemma” featuring Sidhu Moose Wala, GuiltyBeatz, and Steel Banglez, and “Madam Moiselle” featuring D-Block Europe. Both have millions of views and streams.

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She briefly dated Burna Boy and was the inspiration for his 2022 hit single, “Last Last.”  She also traded jabs with Jada Kingdom over him in early 2024.

Furthermore, according to her Instagram, she performed in Denmark in June and Dubai in July of 2024. She also collabs with choreographers that do choreography to her songs, even attempting one herself in August. Seems like Stefflon Don is nowhere close to being done with music.


BlocBoy JB

 

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From Memphis, Tennessee, JB started rapping at a young age. Releasing six mixtapes between 2016 and 2017, his single “Shoot” became a viral hit. Accompanied with a viral dance, it caught the attention of famous rapper Drake who got in contact with him. There they made the song “Look Alive” in 2018 which hit #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and got millions of streams. 

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From there, he released Fatboy in 2019, another mixtape with multiple famous artists including Lil Baby, Moneybagg Yo, and more.

Where is he now?

While he hasn’t released anything that got as big as “Look Alive,” he has released more music since then. In 2022, he released his album Bacc 2 Da Bloc which has 15 songs. Some noteable tracks on this album are “Smoke” featuring EST Glee with 3.6 million views on the music video, and “M.E.M 2 Jacksonville” featuring SpotemGottem with 1.5 million views. Both have millions of streams on Spotify.

In 2023 he released “Foreign on Foreign” with Lil Migo and Fastcash CMoney. Most recently he released a new track called, “Prod by Bloc Pt 2” on December 23, 2024.

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Despite being less active in rap than he once was, he definitely hasn’t fully left the rap scene fully.


YBN Nahmir

 

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From Birmingham, Alabama, rapper and songwriter YBN Yahmir gained traction in 2017 with his song “Rubbin off the Paint.” The song gained millions of streams and even charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #46. 

Not long after, in 2018, he dropped his debut project YBN: The Mixtape which he did with the other members of YBN (Young Boss N***s).  The project included collabs with bigger artists such as Wiz Khalifa, Gucci Mane, and many more.  The song “Bounce Out With That” gained a lot of streams from fans. 

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Where is he now?

In 2021, YBN Nahmir came out with “Oppa Stoppa” featuring 21 Savage. This gained traction with 40 million views on the official music video and over 273 million streams on Spotify. Besides this, he hasn’t dropped any viral hits since then.

It seems that YBN Nahmir is battling an alcohol addiction. “’I’m not out here doing hardcore drugs,’ Nahmir said in the tweet. ‘Im addicted to alcohol & I just need a little help, that’s all. I pop Percs here & there, smoke some weed. Normal s**t, but I do feel my body failing. I gotta be here for the people that’s here for me in the long run. I wanna be sober.'” 

Fortunately, he still seems to be performing. According to his Instagram, he has a tour in Canada in January of 2025 where he will be stopping in 14 locations including Montreal, Ottawa, and more.

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WifisFuneral

 

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Like many others, WifisFuneral started on SoundCloud. In 2016, he released Black Heart Revenge which had a few viral songs including “Lights” and “Love The Feeling” featuring Robb Banks. He later came out with 12 tracks on Ethernet in 2018 which continued to grow his fanbase. His rapping falls into emo rap, which tends to have more melancholic beats, similar to Juice Wrld and XXXTentacion.

Where is he now?

According On The Dot, in 2020 WifisFuneral put out a tweet saying he was going to retire from rap. However, he came back as seen in his albums after 2020. He came out with five albums since 2018: Smoking Mirrors (2021), Conn3ct3d (2019), Until We Meet Again (2022), 4 Month Binge Before Revenge (2022), and Black Heart Revenge 2 (2023). While none of these got as much attention as some of his earlier work, his album Conn3ct3d with Robb Bank was seemingly the most successful with songs like “Can’t Feel My Face” and “Anything.”

According to his Instagram, he is going on a small Midwest tour from the end of January ’25 to the beginning of February ’25. He will be hitting four cities including Cleveland, Covington, Chicago, and Madison.

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Trippie Redd

From Canton, Ohio, Trippie Redd started releasing tracks in 2014. Similar to WifisFuneral, his rapping style is more on the darker side, aligning more with the emo rap style than anything else.

In 2017 he was signed to Elliot Grainge’s label. After that, he dropped his mixtape A Love Letter to You, which had multiple hits including “Love Scars,” which got over 157 million streams on Spotify, and “Poles 1469,” which has over 220 million streams as of this writing.

In 2018, Trippie Redd released his first studio album Life’s a Trip, which made the top 5 on the Billboard 200 chart. Some notable tracks on this album are “Dark Knight Dummo” featuring Travis Scott and more recent addition “Bang,” as both have millions of streams on YouTube and Spotify.

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Where is he now?

Trippie Red dropped three albums in 2023: Mansion Musik, A Love Letter To You 5, and Saint Michael V2. He is still on the darker side of rap with hints of punk and rock in some of his songs. On his latest albums he was able to collaborate with other famous rappers such as Lil’ Wayne on “I’m Mad At Me,” and The Kid LAROI on “Wind,” among others.

Furthermore, in 2024 Trippie performed at Rolling Loud in Miami where he performed hits like “Dark Knight Dummo,” “Miss the Rage,” “Taking a Walk,” and more. The crowd was very active and sang the songs word for word proving his fanbase is still present. Folks weren’t too sure after he had to cancel a tour the previous year.

While his Instagram is wiped except for one post, the post seems to be a clip of a music video. Captioned “Hi #LLD,” it seems that he may be bringing something new to the table in this coming year.

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