Ricardo Valdez Valentine Jr., who goes by the stage name 6lack (pronounced “black”), is an accomplished American singer, rapper, and songwriter.
Born on June 24, 1992, he rose to prominence with the release of his hit single “Prblms” in 2016, which debuted on the prestigious Billboard Hot 100 chart.
REAL FACTS ABOUT RICARDO VALDEZ
FULL NAME: Ricardo Valdez Valentine Jr.
DATE OF BIRTH: June 24, 1992
PLACE OF BIRTH: Baltimore, Maryland
NATIONALITY: American
OCCUPATION: Singer, Rapper and Songwriter
EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION
Ricardo Valdez Valentine Jr., better known as 6lack, was born on June 24, 1992, in Baltimore, Maryland. When he was five years old, he moved to Atlanta, Georgia, with his parents.
He attended Stone Mountain High School and later transferred to Newton High School.
Being the oldest of three siblings, Valentine’s passion for music started at a young age. At just four years old, he had his first recording experience at his father’s studio.
In middle school, he began rapping and became known as a battle rapper, participating in numerous freestyle battles during his youth, even going up against rapper Young Thug.
CAREER
In July 2011, 6lack signed a record deal with Flo Rida’s International Music Group and Strong Arm Records.
This opportunity led him to leave Valdosta State University and dedicate himself to learning about the music industry.
He spent the next five years with the label, releasing his music on his SoundCloud account.
After relocating to Miami, Florida to pursue his music career with a record label, 6lack faced financial instability and found himself spending most of his time either sleeping in the studio or on the streets.
Eventually, due to dispute regarding his artistic freedom and management, he decided to part ways with the label.
In 2015, 6lack announced his affiliation with the musical collective Spillage Village, having lived with the members of EarthGang.
He made appearances on four tracks of Spillage Village’s EP titled Bears Like This Too in the same year.
Following his departure from the label, 6lack signed with Love Renaissance and Interscope Records.
His talent and potential were recognized by Rolling Stone in November 2016, as they included him in their list of “10 New Artists You Need to Know”.
Subsequently, he released his debut studio album, Free 6lack, which achieved a peak position of number 34 on the Billboard 200 chart.
The album’s single “Prblms” reached number 73 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and earned him his first platinum record.
In April 2017, he joined Canadian singer The Weeknd as the opening act for his Legend of the Fall tour in North America.
In April 2018, he dropped a new song called “OTW” featuring Khalid and Ty Dolla Sign, which reached the 57th spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This track became 6lack’s most successful song on the Hot 100.
Following that, he released the first single for his second album, titled “Switch”, on June 22, 2018, along with a music video that came out on July 16.
The album’s second single, “Nonchalant”, was released on August 17, along with its accompanying music video.
On September 14, 2018, 6lack released his second studio album, East Atlanta Love Letter, which featured guest appearances from Future, J. Cole, Offset, and Khalid.
Before the album’s release, he put out the singles “Switch” and “Nonchalant” to build anticipation.
In October 2018, 6lack embarked on a tour to promote his album, with opening acts including THEY., Tierra Whack, Boogie, Deante’ Hitchcock, Summer Walker, and Ari Lennox.
In 2019 and early 2020, he also collaborated on songs like “Waves” by Normani and “Crowded Room” by Selena Gomez.
In May 2020, 6lack released a track called “ATL Freestyle”. A few weeks later, on June 24, 2020, he celebrated his birthday by dropping the single “Float”.
He also announced the release of his EP titled 6pc Hot, which came out on June 26 and included the single “Know My Rights” featuring Lil Baby.
Additionally, he launched his own hot sauce brand called 600 Degrees Original.
6lack made guest appearances on two songs from Spillage Village’s album Spilligion, which was released in September 2020.
In the same year, he also collaborated with the British virtual band Gorillaz and singer-songwriter Elton John on a track called “The Pink Phantom” for Gorillaz’s seventh studio album, Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez.
PERSONAL LIFE
6lack made an announcement in February 2017 regarding the arrival of his baby girl, Syx Rose Valentine.
At present, he is in a relationship with soulful vocalist Bianca Quiñones, who is recognized by her stage name Quiñ.
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