Post Malone’s rise to international fame was both quick and unexpected, but why exactly is he famous?
Post Malone’s first taste of fame came after the release of his debut single ‘White Iverson’ in 2015. He followed the success of the single with his record-breaking debut album ‘Stoney’ and is famous for his genre-fluid music, vocals, and distinctive appearance.
Read on to learn more about Post Malone’s journey to fame, music, and his tattoos.
Riding the Wave of Success
The primary reason for Post Malone’s success is his music, but he’s had a lot of help along the way.
Malone was born in New York but his family moved to Texas for his father’s work when he was nine. Malone’s interest in music developed in part from his father’s tastes and he recalls music being a pretty much constant presence whilst he was growing up.
It was upon moving to Texas that he started to take his music more seriously though, and he said in an interview, “I moved to Dallas and I started making music. So, that’s really it. And from then on I just started making what I like. Playing guitar. And writing my own songs. And just making music”.
Post Malone, like most artists, took a while to identify his sound and was influenced by those before him. “I so badly wanted to be like Mac and Travis and Rocky” he said in an interview, adding that it took him a while to figure out his approach as an artist.
He was part of a “hardcore band” whilst in high school but moved to Los Angeles after graduating to really pursue his music and formed the group BLCKVRD with other aspiring artists and producers.
This set the stage for the release of his debut single ‘White Iverson’, which was a viral overnight success and propelled the singer from anonymity to widespread recognition.
He told Fader that the song was recorded spontaneously just two days after he wrote it with production from FKi 1st, and he wasn’t prepared for the attention it would receive. Malone released the song on soundcloud and within 3 weeks it had received one million plays.
Riding the wave of his success, he followed the track’s release with a music video for the single and signed a deal with Republic Records in the summer of 2015.
Leading up to the release of his debut album ‘Stoney’ in November 2016, Malone became a frequent presence in elite music circles working with the likes of Kanye West, 50 Cent, and Justin Bieber.
The album firmly laid to rest any speculation that Malone was merely a one-hit wonder and broke a record set by Michael Jackson for the number of weeks spent in the top 10 of Billboard’s R&B and Hip Hop Albums chart.
Watch Post Malone’s debut single ‘White Iverson’ in the YouTube video below.
Tattoos
Malone’s appearance has come to be defined by his body art, in particular his striking facial tattoos.
He told GQ that he has tattoos of late musicians who weren’t able to overcome their struggles with mental health, as well as a tattoo of a sword on his face that he got with the primary attention of maddening his mom.
Of the tattoos adorning his face he said, “it does maybe come from a place of insecurity, to where I don’t like how I look, so I’m going to put something cool on there so I can look at myself and say, ‘You look cool, kid,’”.
Post Malone’s number of tattoos has grown alongside his fame, and he boasts an impressive collection.
His high school classmates prophesied that Malone would become famous, and it looks like they were absolutely right.