Megan Thee Stallion is an American rapper and songwriter from San Antonio, United States. Born Megan Jovon Ruth Pete in 1995, she first attracts attention when videos of her freestyling circulate on social media. Her work is associated with hip hop, pop rap, southern hip hop and trap.

Career

She signs with 1501 Certified Entertainment in 2018 and gains wider recognition in 2019 with the commercial mixtape Fever. The release reaches the top ten of the Billboard 200, as does her extended play Suga in 2020.

Early singles include Hot Girl Summer, Cash Shit and Savage. A 2020 remix of Savage featuring Beyoncé reaches number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and helps lead into her debut studio album Good News (2020). The album’s single Body makes her the first female artist to have three number-one entries on the Streaming Songs chart within a year.

She also appears on Cardi B’s single WAP, which tops the Billboard Hot 100 and attracts significant cultural attention. Her compilation album Something for Thee Hotties (2021) reaches number five on the Billboard 200 and includes Thot Shit, a top-20 single that receives a Grammy Award nomination.

After legal disputes with her former label and a criminal case in which she is shot and injured by rapper Tory Lanez, she completes her contracts with 1501 Certified Entertainment and 300 Entertainment. Her second studio album, Traumazine (2022), is her final release under those labels and includes Sweetest Pie, which peaks at number 15 in the United States.

Labels and later releases

In 2023, she establishes Hot Girl Productions, which releases her third studio album Megan (2024). Its single Hiss becomes her first solo number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and makes her the first solo female rapper to debut at number one on the Billboard Global 200. Her labels also include Roc Nation and Hot Girl Music.

Awards and recognition

Megan Thee Stallion receives BET Awards, BET Hip Hop Awards, American Music Awards and MTV Video Music Awards, along with three Grammy Awards. At the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, she becomes the second female rapper to win Best New Artist since Lauryn Hill in 1999. In 2020, Time names her among the 100 most influential people in the world.

Other work

She appears in film and television and heads the documentary Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words (2024).