While American rapper Logic’s birth name seems like an honorific title, it is not. He did not always have the glamorous life he created for himself.
Logic grew up in poverty in sub-suburban Maryland. He had a difficult upbringing, being biracial, and having had challenging moments with his parents. The violence he faced around him, and the struggles he encountered growing up, inspired much of his music, specifically his Everybody album.
Find out more below about Logic’s journey before he reached adulthood.
Logic’s Tough Childhood
Logic was born to father Robert Bryson Hall, who is African American, and a white mother who remains unnamed, in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Gaithersburg is a populous suburb in Montgomery County, United States. It has various areas of recreation, wealthy neighborhoods and smart growth techniques.
The area is also known for its high rates of ethnic and economic diversity. While Maryland has rich neighborhoods, Logic speaks of living in a Section 8 household where he was constantly surrounded by crime.
He said in a Complex interview, “”People look at me like, ‘He’s from the suburbs and he was raised rich, and mommy and daddy pay for everything. Man, get the f–k out of here.”
“Growing up [in Maryland], there were guns in the house, my brothers were out selling crack. I grew up on Section 8 housing, food stamps, welfare and dealing with social services. I never had a Christmas, I never had a birthday.”
Logic used his hardships as inspiration for his music, exhibited in his powerful lyrics.
Watch his Genius interview about his song Everybody, inspired by his sufferings, below.
He explained his mother’s abusive tendencies in an interview, “”My mother got stabbed, she was raped, she tried to choke me to death as a child.”
Logic even faced racism from his own mother, whom he has not spoken to in years.
““My mother was racist. It’s so hard to wrap your head around that and the fact that my own mother would call me a n****r as a child.”
His father was not a good role model either, although they keep in touch. He has said that he feels like he is his “father’s father”.
This influenced his performance in school, and from a young age, he was in the class for students with behavioral problems. In the fifth grade, his mother removed him from school, opting to “homeschool” him instead, but he did not receive a proper education as she “slept all day”.
In the eight grade, Logic was forced back into school by social services, and the intelligent artist did not find it difficult to get back into rhythm after 3 years of absence.
He took the aptitude test and passed. Of this, he said, “I went from fifth grade to eighth grade and passed it. I also took the mental test and they were like, ‘Oh my god, you don’t have any problems. You’re not crazy.’’’ I’m like, ‘I know I don’t have any problems, what the fuck you mean?’ And they were like, ‘Oh, our bad.’”
The rapper skipped so many classes at Gaithersburg High School that he was expelled, after which he worked odd jobs for minimum-wage. At age 17, he was thrown out of his home following an argument with his father, and decided to focus on building his rap career.
How Logic’s Upbringing Inspired His Music
Logic’s intelligent, complicated lyrics deal with various problems of racism and mental health.
He was inspired by Frank Sinatra as he used to watch him on television at home while his mother slept, and made various mixtapes every year from the age of 15 with variations of the title Young Sinatra.
Songs such as Everybody and 1-800-273-8255 are inspired by his personal struggles with mental health and racial identity.
The rapper announced his retirement in July 2020 after dropping a final song, committing to being a good father.