As leader of the Griselda collective and label, rapper Westside Gunn fuses ’90s drug-rap beats and rhymes with modern-day influences.
• The Buffalo native began rapping at a young age and formed a group called The Forerunners in high school. The crew included future Griselda comrades Conway the Machine (his brother) and Benny the Butcher (his cousin). • Westside Gunn founded Griselda Records in 2014 and dropped his first commercial album, Flygod, in 2016. Guests on the LP include Danny Brown and Action Bronson. • In 2017, Griselda Records signed a distribution deal with Eminem’s Shady Records. The deal covered releases by Westside Gunn and Conway the Machine, making them the first-ever Buffalo rappers to sign with a major label. • Westsidse Gunn was officially crowned hip-hop royalty in 2017, when Wu-Tang Clan rapper Raekwon passed him the torch with a stirring speech at Webster Hall in New York City. • The rapper’s 2020 album WHO MADE THE SUNSHINE features Slick Rick, Black Thought, Busta Rhymes, and the entire Griselda crew.