Before Quavo, Takoff and Offset would become one of the biggest rap groups of all time
Before they would work with the biggest artists in the game, from Big Sean, Nicki Minaj, Cardi
B, Drake, Gucci and Travis Scott, even appearing on tracks with Calvin Harris and Katy Perry
Before Migos would create the sound for a lot of your favorite rappers
Before Donald Glover gave them a shout out while accepting a Golden Globe, calling them
the Beatles of this Generation.
And whether he knew it or not, Migos would go on to have 14 songs appear on the Billboard
Hot 100 at the same time, a feat that only one other group has ever done. The Beatles.
Before Culture 2 Would Give them their first number 1 album
Before Migos would have a number one hit with “Bad and Boujee”
Right after Migos hit number one on the charts, they headed into Power 106 radio station in
Los Angeles, where a young Jeremy Hecht was standing trying to look cool as he dapped
up Quavo, Offset and Takeoff during his first official day as an intern. It was moments
after that while Quavo was smoking a massive blunt, that he learned I was from Canada.
To which he responded… “Pass Canada The Blunt.” Now I’m not a smoker, but with
the weight of an entire country on my back, I pulled through and I have a picture to prove
it.
I have also never been higher in my entire life to this day, thank you Quavo.
Migos have come a long way since their days in Atlanta where they had to trap for money
while working on their early mixtapes. But how did they go from being unknown to one
of the most successful rap groups of all time? Well you clicked on the right video.
What’s going on good people in the comment section? My name is Jeremy Hecht, I hope you’re
having one Hecht of a day. Now this is an updated version, I’ve recently updated other
big artists like Wiz and YG so be sure to check those out after you finish watching
this one and let me know who to cover next in the comments down below. I’ve also got
a question for you before we start the video that we’ll answer at the end:
“What burger joint did Offset work at for 3 days?”
Alright, let’s get into it!
The trio were born and raised in Athens, Georgia before moving to Lawrenceville. Quavo was
born Quavious Marshall, on April 2nd 1991, Offset born Kiari Cephus, on December 14th
1991 and TakeOff, born Kirshnik Ball, on June 18th 1994. Somebody commented on our last
Before They Were Famous video that Takeoff is actually the 4th ball brother.
So… Maybe not…
Alright now let me break down their family tree for the people who still don’t know
how the three are related. Quavo’s sister is Takeoff’s mother and Offset is cousins
with both of them, so they are not only family on the track but in real life too. TakeOff
and Offset’s fathers left their household at a young age and Quavo’s father passed
away when he was just 4 years old, so the three were raised mainly by Quavo’s mother,
who was a hairstylist and often looked after all of them. No wonder he adlibs “Momma”
so much. MOMMA.
And Offset’s mom can be seen spitting bars in the video for 2 Chainz’s song “PROUD.”
And even more recently, he reconnected with his estranged father and it appears that they
are working through their issues together.
Music was something that all three members of the group gravitated towards from early
on. They were inspired by the ATL legend Gucci Mane as well as groups like Outkast and the
Hot Boys. At first, the group was only Quavo and Takeoff who began rapping in elementary
school together. Quavo’s rap name was Crunk Boy in the 8th grade and he would make his
own mixtapes to pass out in school. But it seemed more likely that Quavo would have a
career in sports than in music. He was a talented quarterback, starting for the Berkmar High
School Patriots and watching some of his highlights, the dude can ball.
And as you can see, it doesn’t seem like he’s lost his touch. He’s also pretty
talented on the court, most recently taking home the NBA All-Star celebrity game MVP.
By the 7th grade, Takeoff was writing songs and making his own beats, but he wasn’t
focused on making it a career until much later. In 2009, Quavo and Takeoff teamed up and were
But even with Quavo’s strong potential on the field, his real passion was in music,
so he dropped out of high school during his senior year to pursue the career full time.
Offset was actually a really good dancer growing up. And while we’re not sure if he was seriously
considering a dancing career, his cousin Quavo told him that he should start rapping. Quavo
even wrote Offset’s first verse for him, and after that, Offset knew he could go bar
for bar with him so he starting writing his own verses and really taking things seriously
in the 9th grade.
Finally, the three decided to join forces and form a group together.
At the time they were living in the North side of Atlanta, which had a heavy Latino
population. They wanted to rep the influence around them and they all felt like brothers,
so they came up with Migos.
With a new rap name and a dream to chase after, the three were motivated to make some money
to fund their music. They began living in an abandoned house that they turned into a
bando. While putting in work at the trap house, they were also putting in work in their home
studio that they built, recording music on a daily basis. Offset caught a charge for
stealing a car at around this time, but was not yet sentenced.
They recorded several mixtapes there and would pass them out to DJ’s in Atlanta clubs.
One of their childhood friends DJ Ray G helped get their records some spins and the name
Migos began to ring a bell within the tight-knit Atlanta rap scene. Their music was being played
at local clubs and they were collabing with some of ATL’s finest. “No Label” is
the mixtape that really started to get them a buzz locally with “Bando” becoming a
standout song from the project. That’s also the song that caught the ears of Zaytoven
and Gucci Mane himself.
And once you got the Gucci stamp in Atlanta, you were on. Gucci brought the crew to his
studio and for six weeks straight, they recorded what I can only imagine was hundreds of songs.
Gucci even offered them a deal to sign with 1017 Brick Squad, but they chose to sign with
Quality Control Music instead.
Which has proven to be an amazing decision. Coach K and P recently landed at number 50
on Billboard’s Power 100 and the two have grown their label into a dominant force with
acts like Cardi B, Lil Yachty and The City Girls later signing on.
But Migos had a buzz growing outside of just Atlanta, even making it all the way to Toronto.
Drake had heard some of the Migos’ work and loved what they were doing. He ran into
them at an event in Atlanta and from there a bond grew.
After Migos released their single Vercase, Drake hopped on it and took the song and Migos
to new heights. Although like Soulja Boy reminded us recently, he actually did a song over the
Versace beat first:
Migos followed that up by released YRN in 2013 and their name was starting to make some
real waves. But even with a Drake feature, it would take them a few more years before
they achieved mainstream fame. While all of their success was beginning to really happen
But once he returned and the group was back at full force, things took off. The group
released their single “Bad and Boujee” in 2017 with Lil Uzi and while it slowly began
to gain some traction, the song along with Migos as a group got blasted into superstardom
when Donald Glover gave them a shoutout while accepting an award at the Golden Globes.
The seemingly out of knowhere shoutout didn’t just stay on that stage. It had a real life
impact on their career. The song quickly jumped to number one on iTunes, and it became the
anthem of that entire year. The video for it now has over 853 million views on YouTube.
Although I still wish Takeoff would have had a verse on the song instead of Uzi, no offense
to Uzi. Since then, they have taken over the game
with singles, features, albums, flows, videos and everything in between. And while all three
members have dropped solo albums, we’re all really looking forward to their next group
project.
In terms of their personal lives, Quavo has been dating rapper Saweetie and the two look
like a super cute couple. We did a Before They Were Famous on her a few months back
but we’ve definitely gotta update hers soon.
Offset has had a couple of rocky moments with his wife, but him and Cardi are the dream
team and have the cutest baby girl together, Kulture. The two got married in 2017 and have
showed the world that love conquers all.
Takeoff keeps things pretty lowkey in terms of his personal life and we’re never 100%
sure what he’s up to, but one thing that I know forsure is that it doesn’t look like
he was left off of Bad and Boujee.
I know that moment’s kinda old but I legitimately think it’s one of the funniest hip-hop moments
I’ve witnessed within the last few years.
Oh by the way, Steak and Shake is the restaurant that Offset worked at for only 3 days. And
there’s the answer to the question from the beginning of the video.
I also have Migos to thank for my current relationship because my girl and I met at
a pre-game party for a Migos concert. The concert ended up getting cancelled and we
hung out the whole night instead. And the rest is history. So once again, thank you
Migos.
But as for the rest of the story, well you know the story because this is Before They
Were Famous. I’m Jeremy Hecht, be sure to follow me on Instagram and let me know who
to cover next for the channel in the comments down below. If nobody else has told you today,
I love you. Dream Good, Live Better, I hope you have one Hecht of a Day and I’ll see
you in the next video.