Riff Raff

At 42 years old, Riff Raff has this physical status:

Horst Christian Simco (born January 29, 1982), better known by his stage name Riff Raff (often stylized as RiFF RAFF), is an American rapper from Houston, Texas.

He was originally managed by Swishahouse co-founder OG Ron C. After being associated with rapper and producer Soulja Boy's imprint S.O.D. Money Gang Inc., Riff Raff was signed to DJ and producer Diplo's record label, Mad Decent, from 2013 through 2015.Simco was formerly a member of the rap group Three Loco along with Andy Milonakis and Dirt Nasty, who reunited on his Balloween 2016 Halloween mixtape performing "Bitches in my Driveway".

The trio premiered a Christmas parody song, "Ho-Ho-Loco", in the TBS Surprise! Instant Xmas Carol special.

The group was featured in a Nerdist Industries production mixing DJ Khaled and Game of Thrones together, remaking the quadruple-platinum, "I'm the One", into "It's My Throne" with the trio playing characters from the HBO show.His debut studio album, Neon Icon, was released June 24, 2014 with Mad Decent.

In April 2016, Riff Raff announced a joint partnership with Stampede Management and BMG, signing a 4-million dollar artist venture agreement for his own label and production company, "Neon Nation Corporation.” According to label representatives, the scope of said agreement would include investments from the joint deal in the areas of musical recordings; publishing; performing musical acts; talent scouting for the territories of the world, and film production.

The joint deal fell apart in relation to legal disputes over the publication of the 2012 film Spring Breakers.On February 3, 2018, Riff Raff announced on his Instagram that he signed to Beartrap Sound owned by singer Blackbear.

The deal was for a reported $500,000 along with a Beartrap Sound pendant and chain set with 10 Ct. weight of VS1 diamonds.

The announcement also includes an album entitled "Pink Python,” released in fall of 2018.

Early life

Simco was born on January 29, 1982, in Houston, Texas, to Anita Isaacs, a maid, and Ronald Simco, a Vietnam War veteran with severe post-traumatic stress disorder, who worked various jobs, including as a police officer and Walmart manager. His mother grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, descending from a family of German Jews and Lithuanian Jews that included several survivors and victims of the Holocaust. Riff Raff was the second of four siblings. He and his family lived in Copperfield, a suburb 25 miles northwest of Houston. Growing up he was obsessed with basketball, playing frequently with other children in his neighborhood. The Simcos had moved to nearby Stone Creek. He attended Langham Creek High School, where he was shooting guard on his school's basketball team, before dropping out in his senior year. Shortly thereafter he obtained his GED.

After his parents divorced, his father was diagnosed with tonsil cancer and the family moved to Duluth, Minnesota to get his father out of the heat into a cooler environment. For a time, Riff Raff and his siblings were shuttled back and forth between Duluth and Houston, where their mother remained. In 2001, he enrolled at Hibbing Community College in Hibbing, Minnesota, where he played on the basketball team for a month and majored in liberal arts. Feeling out of place, he dropped out in 2003 and moved back to Houston, where he painted cars in the in-vogue "candy-colored" style and gradually built his new identity. He eventually relocated to Los Angeles and began to take his rapping career seriously.

Personal life

Riff Raff has a large number of tattoos, including the logos for WorldStarHipHop, NBA, and MTV, which he had acquired during auditions for the 2009 reality TV show From G's to Gents. Previously, he had a BET tattoo on the front of his right shoulder, which was later covered up with a tattoo of his dog, "Jody Husky". He is a fan of The Simpsons, with a tattoo of Bart holding test tubes that reads "The Freestyle Scientist" on his chest. He also has a large gothic cross below his left shoulder, framed by a prayer that reads, "Dear Jesus, Please Let Me In. Your Child, Horst Simco."

On August 11, 2013, Riff Raff was arrested in Greensboro, North Carolina after police found an open container of alcohol, marijuana, another unspecified illegal substance and drug paraphernalia in his vehicle. Riff Raff was booked into jail along with the two passengers in his vehicle, and was released without bail later that night.

On May 31, 2018, Riff Raff was accused of drugging and raping a woman after a 2013 show in Melbourne. All venues on his Australian and New Zealand tour subsequently canceled his scheduled concerts. Afterward, a second woman, aged 17 at the time, alleged that in Milwaukee, Riff Raff invited her on his tour bus; according to the accuser, he proceeded to touch her repeatedly while making suggestive comments.

On January 22, 2020, Riff Raff settled a lawsuit related to a sexual assault claim made against him, from a 2014 incident at a Nevada brothel.

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Musical career

Riff Raff began rapping in 2005, making himself CDs of his rapping over other artists' beats and handing them out at numerous malls around the Greater Houston area, including Katy Mills Mall. Devin the Dude and Paul Wall, two Texas veteran rappers, influenced him in their early years. In late 2008, Riff Raff took advantage of social media, YouTube, and WorldStarHipHop to start performing songs, freestyle-videos, and sketch clips that showcased his skills as slapstick and performance art. He did this with the support of his first talent manager, DB da Boss, whose studio provided recording and video services. "He was very motivated and very optimistic," DB told LA Weekly about the rapper. "Undereath, the shell is a very intelligent man," goes on to say. He compared Northside Houston rappers from label Swishahouse, who were also on the rise at the time, including Paul Wall, Chamillionaire, and Slim Thug. He began braiding his hair up in braids, popular among "Northsiders" like Slim Thug and buying for bling at TV Jewelry, a store co-owned by Paul Wall and charismatic Vietnamese immigrant "TV" Johnny Dang, from whom Riff Raff has purchased gold grills. Riff Raff spent a large amount of his time selling CDs at universities and malls, occasionally alongside other local artists, such as Fat Tony and Freestyle Bully.

He appeared in many auditions, including for a part of a peanut butter commercial designed for a youth. He and his companion attempted to Buy the Band by P. Diddy, but no success was found. He was so determined to be famous that he travelled to Atlanta to try out for MTV's reality show From G's to Gents. He quickly got a huge MTV logo tattooed on his neck and changed his stage name to "MTV Riff Raff" after learning that he had been cast for the program's second season before taping began. Despite being cut from the series on the second episode, he left a lasting impression on viewers through his extravagant style and funny ad-libs. On the season's debut in early 2009, his presence on the program would be greeted with immediate attention.

After being shown by well-known producer The Alchemist in the same year, actor, comedian, and rapper Simon Rex noticed Riff Raff. After seeing one of his freestyle videos in which he revealed his phone number, Rex contacted Riff Raff, and soon enough, the two became friends and began recording as Riff Raff and Dirt Nasty. The two people later formed Three Loco, as well as comedian Andy Milonakis, raising Riff Raff's fame by tapping into the two celebrities' fan bases.

Riff Raff started in 2011 and was relocated to Los Angeles by OG Ron C (of Swishahouse fame) and moved to Swishahouse. Riff Raff began posting new music videos that increased the artist's internet fame. They include songs such as "Jose Canseco" and "Marc Jacobs." Riff Raff signed to Soulja Boy's brand S.O.D. in mid-2011. Money Gang Inc. Riff Raff joined Soulja Boy's SODMG brand before they met in person; no paperwork was ever signed; no paperwork was ever signed. However, Riff Raff maintained his stage name, this time to Riff Raff SODMG. They'll be around for about a year, but Riff Raff did not push or pay Raff Raff, resulting in him being fired from the company. Following Raff's break, Soulja Boy called him a "cokehead."

Riff Raff, who is affiliated with Diplo and Harry Fraud, as well as Queens rapper Action Bronson, has been associated with Riff Raff before the official split. In less than two months, the music video he posted for his collaboration with Fraud and Bronson, "Bird on a Wire," reached its one million viewers. Complex Music's "Bird on a Wire" was ranked as the 27th best song of 2012.

Among others, he will post music videos for the songs "Larry Bird", "Time," and the Chief Keef partnership "Cuz My Gear" in early 2012. Riff Raff revealed a collaborative album with Diplo tentatively titled Jody Highroller in April 2012, with guests Skrillex, Usher, Soulja Boy, Gucci Mane, Mystikal, and Rusko. Riff Raff developed the Summer of Surf mixtape in June 2012. In June 2012, he signed with Diplo's brand Mad Decent. In July, he released The Golden Alien's debut album, "Freeze Dried," "Obtuse Angle," and "Obtuse Angle" on MikeChekMusic's "Freeze Dried" track. In August, it was followed by the debut of Birth of an Icon, Stereogum's "Mixtape of the Week."

Riff Raff, Raff Raff's forthcoming Mad Decent second studio album, after the introduction of his mixtape Hologram Panda with producer Dame Grease, told MTV that his forthcoming Mad Decent second studio album, Riff Raff, The Neon Icon, would be shortened to Neon Icon. He told Complex in February 2013 that his second studio album would be released some time in the third quarter of 2013.

He dropped "Dolce & Gabbana," the first single from Neon Icon, on June 25, 2013, but only two days later he revealed that the song would not be released on the website. Around the same time, he appeared on Far East Movement's single "The Illest" as well. On July 12, 2013, then unveiled another non album single titled "Mr. Popular," and a few days later, the song's music video was revealed. Riff Raff announced in August 2013 that he would unleash Galaxy Gladiators, a joint venture with Action Bronson.

"How To Be The Man" was his first official single for Neon Icon, which was directed by DJ Mustard. Riff Raff told Rolling Stone in an interview that lead up to the album's release that he'd feature "Real Boyz" featuring rappers OJ da Juiceman and Cap 1, as well as "Sucka Askin' Questions" with Lil Debbie and "Shoulda Won a Grammy" with Action Bronson. Rolling Stone included the album on their list of "27 Must-Hear Albums of 2014" in March 2014, ahead of its debut. Riff Raff announced on Twitter on May 20, 2014, that after a long wait, Neon Icon was scheduled for a release date on June 24, 2014. The official track listing of the album was announced on the same day as Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Paul Wall, Mike Posner, and Amber Coffman of Dirty Projectors, as well as Slim Thug.

Riff Raff recruited We Came As Romans' bassist Andy Glass to play bass on the tour during the 2015 Vans Warped Tour.

On June 1, 2015, Riff Raff announced that he would debut his second studio album, Peach Panther. Travis Barker's first single, "Spazz Out," was released around this time, but the album's release date has been postponed until 2016. In early November 2015, he released Trench Coat Towers, an EP. Peach Panther's launch date has been extended several times, with early 2016 being cited on his Instagram as the new date. During 2015, he appeared on several singles, including "Doctor Pepper" with Diplo, CL, and OG Maco, as well as Flux Pavilion's single "Who Wants to Rock." "Carlos Slim," Peach Panther's first single, was released in early 2016. The album was finally released on June 24, 2016.

Riff Raff revealed a partnership with Stampede Management and BMG in April 2016, raising US$4 million for his Neon Nation Corporation's efforts to invest in music, as well as in "movies and talent around the world" to create an entertainment empire. Peach Panther, his second studio album, has released three projects with DJ Afterthought, including Quavo, Skepta, Trae tha Truth, Travis Barker, and others. The majority of the songs off "BALLOWEEN" have been on hold for a month or two, and were finally announced. Aquaberry Aquarius, the 6-brother company Cimorelli, has lost Wiz Khalifa and Lisa Cimorelli, as well as underground famous rap stars Bones, Fat Nick, and Germ. On August 4, 2017, "The White West," referring himself as "the white Kanye West," will be released, bringing in young artists like Dice SoHo and Jimmy Wopo.

Cool Blue Jewels was released by Riff Raff and DJ Afterthought on February 9, 2018 with contributions from Wiz Khalifa, Chevy Woods, Jimmy Wopo, Young Buck, and Project Pat. Riff Raff released Tangerine Tiger, a mixtape featuring Z-Ro, Lil Tracy, Ricki Rich, and others. Riff Raff released his third studio album named Pink Python on April 12, 2019, which featured guest appearances by Chief Keef, J-Dawg, and Killah Priest. Riff Raff premiered his single "Jazzmine" with the Houston Chronicle, a reimagining of "A Whole New World" from Aladdin starring Iliana Eve, Jonathan Hay, Aneesa Badshaw, Ranna Royce, and others. Riff Raff's fourth studio album titled Cranberry Vampire was released on October 25, with appearances by Simon Rex, Andy Milonakis, Chief Keef, and others.

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