From his strong start in the music business to his love of lemon pepper wings, here is
the untold truth about Rick Ross:
Number 12.
Beginning
Rick Ross, known initially as William Leonard Roberts II, was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi
on January 28th, 1976; but, he was brought up in Carol City, Florida.
He received his diploma from Miami Carol City High School before getting a football scholarship
to Albany State University.
He began working under Suave House Records, where he initially went by Teflon Da Don;
it wasn't until the mid-2000s that he changed his professional name to Rick Ross.
He got this new stage name from "Freeway" Rick Ross, an author who faced a lot of legal
issues concerning substances in the past; but, the two of them aren't connected in any
way.
Later on, he signed with Slip-n-Slide Records, which became an affiliate of Def Jam in 2006.
During this time, he did several live performances with Trick Daddy and was a guest on numerous
albums released by Slip-n-Slide Records.
Number 11.
Rise To Fame
Rick Ross released his first album in August 2006 titled Port of Miami, which made it to
the top of the U.S. Billboard 200 list of albums; it sold almost 190,000 copies within
a week of its release.
It was even predicted to be "the summer's biggest rap record" by Rolling Stone.
Ross was also featured on a couple of DJ Khaled's songs around the same time.
He released his second album, Trilla, in 2008, which also gained a lot of recognition.
In 2010, Ross came out with the Albert Anastasia EP as well as Teflon Don, his fourth album;
this record sold 176,000 copies within the first week.
After putting out another mixtape, working with Diddy, and signing other artists to Maybach
Music Group, Ross performed at the 2011 BET Awards and was nominated for Best Male Hip-Hop
Artist.
At the beginning of 2012, he earned the title "Hottest MC in the Game."
Fast forward to 2017, and Rick Ross had accomplished many things; he released five more albums,
God Forgives, I Don't, Mastermind, Hood Billionaire, Black Market, and Rather You Than Me.
Number 10.
Tattoos
One of the most noticeable aspects of this famous rapper is his insane amount of tattoos.
Rick Ross has upwards of 100 of these permanent artworks that cover nearly his entire body.
His first tattoo was a dollar symbol that he had done when he was just 13 to 14 years
old, which was a sign of his future success.
He has several that say "Rest In Peace" dedicated to his father and his friends as well as Psalm
27, his favorite scripture of the Bible.
Rick Ross also has "Chill Will," his nickname from childhood, tattooed on his stomach.
His other tattoos include several skulls, his parents' birthdays, and a "W" on his forehead
that stands for "win."
Ross stated that he uses these works of art to remember various periods in his life and
that "[all of my tattoos are of] the different things that I love, different things that
I admire, different things that I will stand for… and different things that make me happy."
Number 9.
Children
Rick Ross has three children.
His oldest daughter's name is Toie Roberts; she just had her Sweet 16 birthday earlier
this year, and her dad threw her a party...the likes of which most teens won't see in their
lifetimes.
The birthday bash took place at Casa Casuarina, which used to be the Versace Mansion.
There were plenty of other famous people there, such as DJ Khaled.
Plus, to top everything off, Ross gave his daughter a brand new Bentley…
I guess there's no need for the used car dealership when your dad is Rick Ross.
His son is 12 years old, and his name is William Roberts III.
Ross has faced a lot of hardships concerning his son's mother, Tia Kemp, who sued him for
more child support money on a couple of different occasions.
However, it was reported that they reached a settlement.
Ross's third child was just born late last year; her name is Berkeley Hermes Roberts,
and her mother is Briana Camille, an Instagram model.
Although she's still tiny, Ross has already begun spoiling her with lavish gifts, including
a gold bracelet and some infant-sized golden flats.
Number 8.
No Sleep
Rick Ross has been a go-getter for years.
He started setting goals for himself at a young age, like when he got his dollar sign
tattoo in his early teens.
But, with constant work comes a lack of sleep.
Most of us need our eight hours of beauty rest per night or else we're not ourselves.
However, Ross is used to getting less than half of that amount at just three hours per
night!
As soon as he woke up, he'd be off making music and staying motivated.
Nevertheless, getting hardly any sleep has had some adverse effects on him.
He's dealt with several medical problems, partially due exhaustion.
Number 7.
Video Games
Although a lot of music artists might seem too busy to play video games, Rick Ross always
makes time for one of his favorite pastimes.
He is an avid gamer, who has mentioned his enthusiasm towards them since he stepped onto
the scene.
He name-dropped Pac-Man in a song with the same title that he recorded with Pill.
The video from his song "No Games" features elements of GTA, a very popular video game
that revolves around various illegal quests and actions.
He enjoys gaming during breaks from the recording studio, and he has stated that he owns pretty
much every game out there.
Number 6.
Wingstop
Rick Ross is a rapper, of course, but did you know that he also owns restaurants?
Well… maybe not restaurants, per se, but franchises: Wingstop, to be exact.
He owned a whopping nine of these chains as of 2014, according to Forbes.
Ross stated in an interview with the company, "I just love Wingstop…
As you can see, the energy in here is always fun.
It's always youthful.
Not only that, you know they got my favorite lemon pepper wings in the world, so it's just
a natural attraction."
His adoration of the restaurant and its food paid off as well; it was reported that his
franchises helped him rake in around $7 million per year.
Nowadays, Ross is said to own up to 25 Wingstops… if you do a little math, that means he could
be making around $19 million annually just from chicken sales alone!
Number 5.
Legal Problems
Rick Ross has also gone through a lot of legal issues in the past.
At the beginning of 2008, he was arrested for a couple of different charges; then, in
August of the same year, DJ Vlad, a YouTuber, accused him of physical offenses.
In 2010, "Freeway" Ricky Ross sued the rapper for $10 million for stealing his name; he
also said he would prevent the release of Ross' new album.
However, this lawsuit was dismissed a little later.
A year after that, he was sued for basically the same thing.
The rapper Teflon Don filed a lawsuit against Rick Ross, who had titled his album Teflon
Don.
He was arrested again that same year for substance charges, and, in 2014, he was taken into custody
yet again.
Then, in 2015, Rick Ross and his bodyguard both came face-to-face with the law concerning
physical aggression toward a lands keeper.
Ross served some time in jail, had to pay $10,000, and was given probation.
Number 4.
Weight Loss
Rick Ross was always known partly as being a big guy.
He enjoys food, which isn't surprising since he owns so many franchises.
However, he had to lose weight to become healthier.
He started dieting in 2011 after facing some health problems partially due to being overweight.
His first significant loss was 75 pounds.
Ross had weighed 350 pounds at his highest but slimmed down rather quickly after the
recommendation from his doctor.
He went on to lose another 25 pounds, making it a total of 100 pounds (and possibly more).
He said that he still enjoys his favorite foods once in a while, but mostly eats healthier
things, like fruit.
When ABC News asked about how he keeps the weight off, he stated, "It's all about balance
to me…
I wanted to balance myself but still enjoy the things I love; so, if I lost weight one
year, the next year it wouldn't be right back on me."
He also said he does CrossFit four days per week; he called it "RossFit" jokingly, but
said that he likes where he's at and that he's feeling good and happy.
Number 3.
Correctional Officer
In 2008, Rick Ross got called out as being a fraud.
The lyrics of his songs often portray a person involved in various illegal activities, and
although he has been arrested on several occasions, his professional background is quite the opposite.
In fact, he used to be a man of the law, so to speak.
During this time, details of his past were revealed online.
He served as a correctional officer in Florida for over a year; even a photograph of him
wearing his uniform was published on a gossip website.
At first, Ross denied that the picture was of him; however, after more and more evidence
came to light, he admitted that he had worked as a correctional officer in the mid-1990s.
However, considering his other not-so-positive run-ins with law enforcement, who's to say
Rick Ross is faking anything?
Number 2.
Health Issues
Although he has been very successful and accomplished many goals, Rick Ross has also had to deal
with some difficult times.
When his doctor first told him to lose weight, it was because he had two seizures within
six hours in 2011.
It is said the result was because of extra weight and lack of sleep.
However, even after Ross made several changes to his lifestyle, he has recently faced more
health scares.
Earlier this year, an ambulance rushed to his Miami home after someone called 911 claiming
he wasn't responding, was having trouble breathing, and was "slobbing out of the mouth."
He was taken to the hospital and put on oxygen; but, the reasoning for this event isn't absolute.
Soon after he was released from the hospital, he experienced more health problems right
before he was supposed to go on stage for a concert in New York City.
It was reported that he had once again had seizures and was having more respiratory issues;
nevertheless, he went out to perform for the crowd anyway.
Although nobody is sure exactly what caused this, Ross has stated that he's feeling much
better.
Number 1.
50 Cent
Rick Ross has had an ongoing feud with fellow rapper 50 Cent since 2009.
The clash began when 50 Cent apparently gave Ross a mean look during the 2008 BET Hip Hop
Awards.
Although he denied the accusation, Ross' song "Mafia Music" contained several lyrics that
bad-mouthed the artist.
The feud continued when 50 Cent released "Officer Ricky (Go Head, Try Me)" to combat Ross, and
it went even further when the "Candy Shop" rapper came out with a series of "Officer
Ricky" cartoons.
He even interviewed Rick's baby's mother, Tia, in which she confirmed her ex's past
job as a correctional officer and made him look like a fraud.
Ross struck back with the song "In Cold Blood," depicting 50's funeral; he continued with
another diss track titled "Push 'Em Over The Edge."
The tension faded for a while; but, in 2013 50 Cent claimed once more that Ross was a
phony, which caused things to flare up again.
However, in 2014 Rick Ross decided to take the high road and said he was finished feuding.
In 2016, he was quoted saying, "At this point, my relationship with Curtis [50 Cent] is really
amusing, due to the fact that I'm the biggest L he ever took...I'm still enjoying my life.
My kids love me.
I'm blessed."
He said he isn't happy about 50's failed clothing line and bankruptcy but is happy to see that
he's still able to "hold his head up every day, [even] with all that weighing on him."
Despite his effort to end things, the animosity between the two rappers picked up once more;
after Ross' most recent health scare, 50 Cent posted comments making a joke of the entire
situation.
But, he deleted the posts later on, after finding out Ross had been hooked up to life
support.