South Florida's famous (and infamous) rappers

Region has long been landing spot for hip-hop, rap scene

Trick Daddy and Kodak Black are just some of South Florida's bad boy rappers.

South Florida has long been engrained in the music scene. Hip-hop and rap are no exception. Here's a look at some other famous (and infamous) rappers who got their starts in South Florida or once called South Florida home.

2 Live Crew

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2 Live Crew was Miami hip-hop in the 1980s.

The group, which the late Fresh Kid Ice (Christopher Wong Won) helped form with founding members Mr. Mixx (David Hobbs) and Amazing Vee (Yuri Vielot), became a household name after popular South Florida radio deejay Luther Campbell lured them to Miami -- minus Vielot -- and signed them to a record deal. Brother Marquis (Mark Ross) joined the group for their debut album, "The 2 Live Crew Is What We Are."

By the time "As Nasty As They Wanna Be" was released in 1989, their reputation as pushers of sexually explicit lyrics were sealed. Their third studio album became the first ever to be deemed legally obscene by the U.S. government.

This 1990 photograph shows rap group 2 Live Crew's album cover, "As Nasty as They Wanna Be."

Won and Campbell made headlines after their June 1990 arrest in Hollywood after a performance at the Futura Club. Their arrests came just three days after a federal judge ruled that the album -- which included such songs as "Me So Horny" and "The F--- Shop" -- was obscene and outlawed in several Florida counties. 2 Live Crew gave birth to the Miami bass acts that followed, among them 69 Boyz, Tag Team, 95 South and the Quad City DJ's.

Ace Hood

Real Name: Antoine McColister
Place of Birth: Port St. Lucie
Date of Birth: May 11, 1988
Hometown: Deerfield Beach

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Born Antoine McColister and raised in Deerfield Beach, Ace Hood has been signed to Def Jam Recordings, Cash Money Records and DJ Khaled's label. Ace released his first album, "Gutta," in 2008. His hit single, "Bugatti," which featured fellow South Florida rapper Rick Ross, was released in 2013. "Hustle Hard" -- released two years earlier in 2011 -- and "Bugatti" earned him a pair of BET Hip Hop Award nominations.

Flo Rida

Real Name: Tramar Dillard
Place of Birth: Miami Gardens
Date of Birth: Sept. 17, 1979
Hometown: Miami Gardens

Flo Rida was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving in Miami Beach in 2011.

Flo Rida (get it?), whose real name is Tramar Dillard, grew up in the Carol City neighborhood of Miami Gardens. As a high school student, he teamed with two other residents of his apartment complex to form an amateur rap group called the GroundHoggz.

The man who would become Flo Rida caught the attention of 2 Live Crew's Fresh Kid Ice, appearing on the 2004 "Freaky Chinese" album. Flo Rida hit the mainstream in 2008 thanks to his breakout single "Low." Other popular Flo Rida songs include "Right Round," "Wild Ones" and "My House."

In 2011, Flo Rida wound up behind bars after his arrest on suspicion of drunken driving in Miami Beach.

Kodak Black

Real Name: Dieuson Octave
Place of Birth: Pompano Beach
Date of Birth: June 11, 1997
Hometown: Pompano Beach

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Kodak Black has made a name for himself in South Florida, in large part due to his felonious ways. The repeat offender has been a regular fixture at the Broward County courthouse in recent years, stemming from arrests on weapons and drug charges. Perhaps more surprising is the fact that he hasn't made headlines since April, when the most recent charges against him were dropped. In addition to his distinctive tattoos, he also has a large social media following that played a large part in his rise to prominence.

Lil Wayne

Real Name: Dwayne Carter Jr.
Place of Birth: New Orleans
Date of Birth: Sept. 27, 1982
Hometown: New Orleans

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New Orleans rapper Lil Wayne moved to Miami Beach in 2011, landing himself a palatial crib on La Gorce Island in Miami Beach. However, the sprawling mansion gave him plenty of fits. First there was the March 2015 incident in which a man called 911 and falsely reported a shooting at Lil Wayne's estate. A similar incident took place in September 2016. Both times wound up being much ado about nothing.

Apparently, it was a bit too much, and he sold the mansion for $10 million last year. Lil Wayne has had a history of drug arrests since 2007, though none in Florida.

Pitbull

Real Name: Armando Christian Pérez
Place of Birth: Miami
Date of Birth: Jan. 15, 1981
Hometown: Miami

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Pitbull has managed to stay out of trouble and has been a pillar for the community, promoting himself as "Mr. 305" (as in, Miami's oldest area code). The son of Cuban expatriates, Armando Christian Perez graduated from Miami Coral Park Senior High School and chose a stage name based on a breed of dog that is outlawed in Miami-Dade County. His debut album ("M.I.A.M.I.") was literally named for the city.

Pitbull and rapper Sean "Diddy" Coms co-founded Bad Boy Latino, with offices in New York and Miami. His music has been featured on various soundtracks to popular movies like "2 Fast 2 Furious," which was set in Miami, and "Men in Black 3." Oh, and he has a stake in the rebranded Miami Subs Grill. It doesn't get more Miami than that.

Rick Ross

Real Name: William Roberts II
Place of Birth: Clarksdale, Mississippi
Date of Birth: Jan. 28, 1976
Hometown: Miami Gardens

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After graduating from Miami Carol City Senior High School, William Roberts II worked as a corrections officer before becoming the rapper known as Rick Ross. His first studio album, "Port of Miami," was released in 2006.

Ross has had several run-ins with the law through the years. He was arrested on gun and drug charges in Miami Beach in 2008. Three years later, Ross was arrested on a marijuana possession charge in Shreveport, Louisiana. Ross was arrested again after a 2014 performance in Greensboro, North Carolina, this time on a year-old warrant for another North Carolina arrest related to marijuana possession. Then in 2015, Ross and his bodyguard were popped in Georgia on kidnapping and assault charges. Ross pleaded no contest to a felony count of aggravated assault, and the other charges were dropped.

While celebrating his 37th birthday in 2013, Ross and his girlfriend were the targets of a drive-by shooting in Fort Lauderdale. They weren't hurt, but they crashed their car into an apartment while trying to get away.

Ross, who has a history of seizures, recently spent time in a South Florida hospital after he was found unresponsive at his Davie home

Stitches

Real Name: Phillip Katsabanis
Place of Birth: Miami
Date of Birth: June 17, 1995
Hometown: Miami Beach

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Stitches made headlines in January 2017, when he was stopped by Miami Beach police for parking in a handicapped spot and found to have a gun and drugs in his car. His first album, "For Drug Dealers Only," was released in 2015. Stitches is best known for his song "Brick In Yo Face." His facial tattoos make him hard to mistake. 

Trick Daddy

Real Name: Maurice Young
Place of Birth: Miami
Date of Birth: Sept. 27, 1974
Hometown: Miami

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Trick Daddy isn't just a rapper. He's also a felon. Maurice Young was just a teenager when he was arrested on drug and gun charges in Miami's tough Liberty City neighborhood. On the day he was released, he was arrested for shooting a man during a street fight. He was convicted and sentenced to prison at the age of 20.

While he was incarcerated, Young's brother was killed. Upon his release from prison, Young turned to rap as an outlet for his thug life. Among his album titles are www.thug.com, "Thugs Are Us," and "Thug Holiday."

Trick Daddy made headlines in 2014 after Broward County deputies found cocaine, a gun and ammunition inside his Miramar home. He is probably best known for his songs "I'm a Thug" and "Take It To Da House."

Vanilla Ice

Real Name: Robert Van Winkle
Place of Birth: Dallas
Date of Birth: Oct. 31, 1967
Hometown: Lake Worth

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Before he was Vanilla Ice, he was Robert Van Winkle. After making it big with the 1990 hit "Ice, Ice Baby," Van Winkle had the starring role in a bad movie -- 1991's "Cool as Ice" -- and made a cameo as himself in "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze."

He found new life as a home-renovation reality TV star on the DIY Network when he was arrested by Lantana police in 2015, accused of repeatedly burglarizing a home. Van Winkle called it a "misunderstanding" and later agreed to a plea deal.


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