Future (born Nayvadius Wilburn, November 20, 1985) is a Haitian-American rapper from Kirkwood, Atlanta, Georgia. He is signed to the record label Epic Records. His name came about after members of The Dungeon Family called him “The Future.” His cousin, producer Rico Wade of The Dungeon Family, encouraged him to sharpen his writing skills and pursue a career as a rapper.
From 2010 to early 2011, Future released a series of mixtapes including “1000,” “Dirty Sprite” and “True Story.” The latter included the single “Tony Montana,” in reference to the “Scarface” film. During this time, Future also partnered with Gucci Mane on the “Free Bricks” collaborative album and wrote YC’s single “Racks.”
Future signed a major record label deal with Epic Label Group in September 2011, days before the release of his next mixtape, “Streetz Calling.” Though Future had previously stated that “Streetz Calling” would be his final mixtape prior to the release of his debut studio album, another mixtape, “Astronaut Status,” was released in January 2012. His debut album, “Pluto,” was released in April 2012 and included remixes of “Tony Montana” featuring Drake and “Magic” featuring T.I.. “Magic” became Future’s first single to enter the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Other collaborators on the album included R. Kelly, Snoop Dogg and Trae Tha Truth. The album reached #2 on the Billboard Rap and Hip-Hop Albums charts and #8 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart. In November 2012 the album was re-released, titled “Pluto 3D, and featuring three new songs and two remixes.
