Megan Thee Stallion

Megan Jovon Ruth Pete (born February 15, 1995), known professionally as Megan Thee Stallion, is an American rapper, songwriter and actress. She gained recognition when videos of her freestyling went viral on social media, leading her to sign with 1501 Certified Entertainment in 2018. She achieved mainstream success the following year with the release of her commercial mixtape Fever (2019), followed by the extended play Suga (2020), both of which peaked within the top ten of the Billboard 200 chart.

Megan had her breakthrough with her 2019 singles "Hot Girl Summer" (featuring Nicki Minaj and Ty Dolla Sign) and "Cash Shit" (featuring DaBaby); her 2020 single "Savage" spawned a remix (featuring Beyoncé) that won two Grammy Awards, peaked atop the US Billboard Hot 100, and was included on her debut studio album Good News (2020). Its single "Body" made her the first female act to release three number-one songs on the Streaming Songs chart within a year. That same year, she guest appeared on Cardi B's single "WAP", which became her second number one song on the Hot 100. Her compilation album Something for Thee Hotties (2021) peaked at number five on the Billboard 200 and included the Grammy Award-nominated top-20 single "Thot Shit".

Following the shooting trial after she was shot in the foot by Tory Lanez, as well as contractual issues with her record label, Megan left both 1501 and 300 Entertainment. Her second studio album, Traumazine (2022), included the single "Sweetest Pie" (with Dua Lipa)—which peaked at number 15 in the US—and served as her final release with the aforementioned labels. She founded her own record label, Hot Girl Productions, in 2023, through which she released her third studio album, Megan (2024). It spawned the single "Hiss", which became Megan's first solo song to top the Billboard Hot 100 and made her the first solo female rapper to debut atop the Billboard Global 200.

Megan is the recipient of various accolades, including six BET Awards, five BET Hip Hop Awards, four American Music Awards, four MTV Video Music Awards, a Billboard Women in Music Award, and three Grammy Awards. At the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards, she became the second female rapper to win Best New Artist (after Lauryn Hill in 1999). Time included her on its list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2020. Outside of music, she has ventured into television and film, headlining the documentary film titled Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words (2024).

Early life and education

Megan Jovon Ruth Pete was born on February 15, 1995, in San Antonio, Texas. She moved to Houston shortly after her birth with her mother, Holly Thomas. Holly, a rapper known as "Holly-Wood", often took young Megan Thee Stallion to recording sessions instead of daycare. Megan's father was in jail for the first eight years of her life. An only child, Megan grew up in Houston's South Park neighborhood. She moved to Pearland with her mother when she was 14 and lived there until she was 18.

Megan has described herself as having been quiet and tending to observe more than she spoke as a child. She was bullied for these traits when she was in elementary school. After being particularly upset by a remark made to her, she was inspired by her mother to stand up for herself. In middle school, she defended a classmate who was bullied for his homosexuality.

Megan began writing raps at age 14. She would steal instrumentals from her mother and write songs over them. When she eventually showed her mother her rapping skills at age 18, Holly required that Megan wait until she was 21 to pursue rapping as a career, commenting that her lyrics were too sexually suggestive for her young age. Megan attended Pearland High School, graduating in 2013. Her father died during her freshman year of high school.

While studying at Prairie View A&M University, Megan's freestyling videos on social media gained popularity, notably one where she was battling against male opponents in a "cypher". The exposure helped her gain a following on social media and many fans, who she refers to as "hotties" and credits for her early success. After taking time off from school to pursue music, she returned home resuming her studies at Texas Southern University. She graduated on December 11, 2021, with a Bachelor of Science in health administration.

Megan adopted the stage name "Megan Thee Stallion" after she was called a "stallion" during her adolescence due to her height (5 ft 10 in (178 cm)) and "thick" body frame; voluptuous, statuesque women in the southern United States are sometimes colloquially called "stallions".

Career

2016–2017: Early beginnings

In 2016, Megan Thee Stallion released her debut single "Like a Stallion," followed by SoundCloud-exclusive mixtapes Rich Ratchet and Megan Mix in 2017. That year she made her professional solo debut with the EP Make It Hot, which included the hit "Last Week in HTx" earning several million views on YouTube. Additionally, she released the song "Stalli (Freestyle)", as a rework of late musician XXXTentacion's "Look at Me!". Around this time, Megan auditioned for the since-postponed Love & Hip Hop: Houston.

2018–2019: Tina Snow and Fever

In early 2018, Megan Thee Stallion signed with 1501 Certified Entertainment, an independent Houston label run by T. Farris and owned by former baseball player Carl Crawford. She was the first female rapper to join the label, and subsequently performed at SXSW Festival in March 2018. In June 2018, she released the EP Tina Snow named after her alter ego, "Tina Snow", who she describes as "a more raw version" of herself. The EP, mainly produced by 1501's in-house producer LilJuMadeDaBeat, was positively received by critics with Eric Torres of Pitchfork highlighting its "quotable lyrics" and Nandi Howard of The Fader praising her rapid and precise rapping style. In November 2018, Megan signed with 300 Entertainment, becoming the first woman on the label. It was during this time that she was scheduled to support Australian rapper Iggy Azalea on her planned Bad Girls Tour; however, the tour was later cancelled due to low ticket sales.

On January 22, 2019, Megan released "Big Ole Freak" as a single from Tina Snow, which became her first Billboard Hot 100 chart entry, peaking at number 65. Her mixtape Fever, released on May 17, 2019, received critical acclaim. On May 21, 2019, she released the music video for the track "Realer", which was inspired by the blaxploitation film style. On June 20, 2019, Megan was selected as one of eleven artists for the 12th edition of XXL's "Freshman Class". Her freestyle in the cypher was praised by music critics.

In July 2019, Megan was featured on Chance The Rapper's debut studio album The Big Day, on the track "Handsome". On August 2, 2019, A Black Lady Sketch Show premiered on HBO; using Megan's song "Hot Girl" in the opening title sequence. In August 2019, Megan's single "Hot Girl Summer", featuring Nicki Minaj and Ty Dolla Sign peaked at number 11 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming her first top 20 single, and topping the Rolling Stone 100. The song, an ode to her viral "hot girl summer" meme, came about after an Instagram Live session between Minaj and Megan.

Megan then appeared on the Quality Control compilation album Quality Control: Control the Streets, Volume 2 on the track "Pastor" (alongside Quavo and City Girls). In September 2019, Megan signed a management deal with Roc Nation. In October, she created and starred in a horror series for Halloween, Hottieween (directed by Teyana Taylor). She also performed her first NPR Tiny Desk Concert during the Tiny Desk Fest. In November 2019, Time placed Megan on their inaugural "Time 100 Next" list.

2020–2021: Career stardom, Suga and Good News

In January 2020, Megan Thee Stallion released the single "Diamonds" featuring singer Normani for the soundtrack of the superhero film Birds of Prey (2020). That same month, she announced her debut album Suga and released the lead single "B.I.T.C.H.". In February 2020, she featured on the single "Fkn Around" by Phony Ppl, and appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, performing "B.I.T.C.H.". In March, she announced that her debut album's release was being delayed as a result of her attempts to renegotiate her contract with 1501 Certified. That same month, the song "Savage", from the EP, went viral on TikTok, when popular user Keara Wilson used it for a dance challenge video, amassing 15.7 million views and 2.4 million likes, as of March 20, 2020.