Fame isn’t easy, but it’s gotta be hard going from the Billboard Hot 100 list to
a jail cell. From taking on the small screen to taking time off to be a dad,
here's why some of your favorite rappers have seemingly disappeared.
Rapper Lil Dicky found fame with hit songs like "Freaky Friday" and "Professional Rapper," so his
music career had a great start in the beginning. When the star released "Freaky Friday" in 2018,
it spent 20 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He went on to release
the charity single "Earth" ahead of Earth Day in 2019. The music video
featured the voices of stars like Leonardo DiCaprio and Miley Cyrus among many others.
Lil Dicky has two albums under his belt as well as an EP. Most wouldn't expect the star to have
slowed down on releasing music so early in his career, but that appears to be exactly what he's
done. As of April 2023, his most recent project is the album Professional Rapper,
which was released in 2015. The rapper briefly reentered the music scene in
2020 when he collaborated with Justin Bieber on his track "Running Over."
"Yeah, Beebs out. I'm just kidding. I don't actually say that. I'm pretty normal."
"Yeah. I'm a normal guy too. You wanna chill? Or…?"
So, why did Lil Dicky seemingly put his music career on pause? Well,
it's because he's busy taking on the lead role in a show based on his life. The star plays
"Dave" in the hit FX comedy of the same name. Dave has lasted for three seasons,
so it doesn't appear to be losing its momentum. When asked about the possibility of releasing
a third album in a 2023 interview with The Wrap, Lil Dicky shared,
"I'm not giving up on that. I'm still working on that every day. It's coming together really well."
Waka Flocka Flame was one of the most talked about rappers of 2010. The artist's breakout
single, "No Hands," spent 32 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart when
it was released that year. Waka Flocka Flame last released new music in 2019,
but it turns out that he may have lost his passion for rap before then. The
star announced his retirement during a 2018 interview with BET's "Raq Rants," saying,
"I [...] gave it up. They bookin' me. I don't wanna rap."
He went on to add,
"Life changed for me. People want me to be 'Hard in Da Paint' Waka,
but I'm 32 years old. I'm a grown ass man."
Waka Flocka Flame might not be famous anymore, but it looks like most of that has been his own
choice. In that same interview, the star revealed he was ready to start a family
with then-wife Tammy Rivera. However, the couple split in 2022. Luckily for fans,
Waka Flocka Flame announced he was set to perform at Michigan's Ferris State
University in 2023 so it looks like he hasn't walked away from music entirely.
Logic's breakout hit "1-800-273-8255" not only raised awareness for mental health,
but it also helped him dominate charts and gain recognition. The song's title is the National
Suicide Prevention Lifeline, and it reportedly had a positive impact, seeing as it may have
resulted in fewer suicides, according to a study released by British Medical Journal.
It seems that Logic accomplished exactly what he set out to achieve
when he released "1-800-273-8255" back in 2017. So fans were likely shocked to
find out that he planned to retire after he released his sixth album,
No Pressure. The rapper took to social media to break the news, writing on Instagram,
"Officially announcing my retirement with the release of 'No Pressure' executive produced
by No I.D. July 24th… It's been a great decade. Now it's time to be a great father."
After welcoming a son with wife Brittney Noell, Logic returned to music as an independent artist
in 2022. He spoke about his brief retirement in an interview with NPR that same year, saying,
"Continuing to chase things like number ones, on this hamster
wheel that inevitably never stops unless you step off of it consciously. I wanted
to be there for his birth. I wanted to be there for his first steps, his first words."
New York native Jadakiss began his career as a member of the hip-hop group The Lox.
He went on to maintain a successful solo career for years until he took a six-year
hiatus. The rapper explained why he decided to take a break during an appearance on The Real.
"I was trying to learn the internet thing [...] You know,
get my followers up. Get my social media outlets, you know, to work in my favor."
Jadakiss went on to explain that he also became a father to twins during his break. Furthermore,
the rapper said that he spent time working through legal troubles with his label,
Def Jam. The rapper previously opened up about renegotiating his contract
with the label. During a 2022 interview with Complex, Jadakiss said that his future with
Def Jam changed after his appearance on the music competition show Verzuz. He explained:
"My numbers went up for hostings and walkthroughs, for shows, and TV cameos. Just in general,
my numbers went up. It also showed Def Jam that they got to do the right thing [and]
restructure my contract. It really showed the world my true worth, what I can do."
There's a chance that this renegotiation process also played a role in the star's
hiatus. Jadakiss made his comeback with his fourth album, Top 5 Dead or Alive, in 2015.
Rapper Fetty Wap found fame in 2015 when his hit single "Trap Queen" climbed to the No. 2
spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It seemed that he had a lengthy career ahead of him at
that point. However, some might say that Fetty Wap has faded into obscurity in recent years.
Legal trouble and a shift in priorities led the star to step away from the spotlight.
He was arrested on federal drug charges in 2021. The rapper later opened up about why
he took a break from music during an appearance on The Fat Joe Show:
"The people I had around me [weren't] experienced. Nobody was experienced,
honestly. [...] I'm tryin' to figure out why this goin' on, why that's goin' on,
and then you know, the finance part, like yo, what's up with this, what's up with that."
Fetty Wap went on to reveal he had to fund much of his career himself,
including tour expenses. He also opened up about the tragic death of his daughter. The
four year old died of heart defect complications in 2021. Unfortunately for fans of the rapper,
Fetty Wap might not be returning to music anytime soon. After his 2021 arrest,
he was arrested once again in August 2022 for an alleged death threat via FaceTime.