New York's Lil Tjay is a rapper-singer with street-level lyrics but pop star energy. Naturally, his live shows have no shortage of hand-waving, crowd singalongs, and a cappella breaks that highlight the depth and intricacy of his bars. Though his lyrics can be intense and personal, Lil Tjay's live shows explode with moments of shirtlessness and water-throwing. Hits like "Leaked," "Brothers" and the Top 20 smash "Pop Out" with Polo G have rocketed Tjay to multiple editions of the Rolling Loud Festival. His No Escape tour took him across America in 2019, and was followed by the True 2 Myself tour in 2020.

Lil Tjay in Concert

Bronx rapper Lil Tjay has racked up millions of streams for his seamless mixture of melodic inflection and intricate rhyming. His style has enough room for giddy pop and somber reflection, infectious songcraft and harsh realities. In turn, Tjay landed multiple songs on the Hot 100 before he left his teens. The artist born Tione Jayden Merritt emerged from hip-hop's place of origin, the South Bronx, absorbing the Michael Jackson, R. Kelly and Usher songs played by his mother. Further inspired by the raps of Drake, Rick Ross and Meek Mill, he started uploading music to SoundCloud in 2017: He was a sensation within his first year with songs about street life and the motivation to escape it. He promptly signed to Columbia Records, which released his No Comparison EP at the end of 2018 and his F.N EP in the summer of 2019. In that time, Tjay appeared on Polo G's breakout "Pop Out," which hit No. 11 on the pop charts, and collaborated with French Montana, Tory Lanez, Blueface and more. In 2019, Tjay released his debut album, True 2 Myself, which debuted in the Top 5 and features appearances by Lil Wayne, Lil Baby, Lil Durk and more.