The Rise and Trials of Lil Durk: A Journey Through Music and Adversity
Trace Durk's journey from a challenging upbringing on Chicago’s South Side to his rise as a prominent figure in hip-hop.
A Challenging Upbringing
Born October 9, 1992, Lil Durk (Durk Derrick Banks), grew up in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago’s South Side. Raised by his mother, who worked as a nurse, his father was incarcerated since Durk was just seven months old. Growing up without a father figure, Durk remembers staying out until 4 or 5 a.m. in the fifth grade and often going hungry because food wasn’t always available.
Rise to Fame through Mixtapes
After discovering a passion for hip-hop, he gained a steady following dropping mixtapes through his collective OTF (Only the Family) on YouTube and Myspace and landed a deal with Def Jam in 2012. Shortly after, he dropped his first single “L’s Anthem” and also appeared on tracks with fellow Chicago artists including Lil Reese, Fredo Santana, and Chief Keef. A year later, he released his follow-up single, “Dis Ain’t What U Want,” shortly before officially affiliating with French Montana’s Coke Boys.
Breakthrough and Tragedy
Released in June 2015, his debut studio album, Remember My Name, reached No. 14 on the Billboard 200. Tragedy also struck that year when his manager Uchenna Agina – known as Chino Dolla or OTF Chino – was tragically murdered in Avalon Park after meeting with NBA star Joakim Noah at the Bulls player’s home to discuss an anti-violence event.
Legal Troubles and Resilience
DeJ Loaf, Yo Gotti, and Young Thug made appearances on his 2016 album Lil Durk 2X, which also included the Ty Dolla $ign-assisted track “She Just Wanna.”
In 2017, he dropped collaborative mixtapes Love Songs for the Streets, Supa Vultures with Lil Reese, and Bloodas with Tee Grizzley. In 2018, he released his third studio album, Signed to the Streets 3, which reached the Top 20 of the Billboard 200.
In February 2019, Lil Durk was involved in a shooting in Atlanta, which led to criminal charges. While out on bail that August, he released his fourth studio album, Love Songs 4 the Streets 2, and became his first project to chart in the Top Five.
He dropped mixtape Just Cause Y’all Waited (2018) and his sixth studio album The Voice (2020) before dropping his collaborative project The Voice of the Heroes with Lil Baby (2021). Later that year, Durk featured on both Kanye West’s Donda and Drake’s Certified Lover Boy. In 2022, Durk released his album 7220 and later collaborated with Cardi B and Kanye West on the non-album track “Hot Shit.”
Recent Achievements and Arrest
In 2023, Durk released Almost Healed, which featured “All My Life,” a collaboration with J. Cole that won a Grammy for Best Melodic Rap Performance.
In October 2024, Lil Durk was arrested by federal authorities on a conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire charge. The arrest came after five other members of his Only the Family (OTF) group were arrested in connection with the murder of rapper Quando Rondo’s cousin. Rondo was the intended target of a 2022 shooting in which gunfire missed him, but killed his cousin, 24-year-old Saviay’a Robinson. The alleged murder was in retaliation for the murder of Chicago rapper and friend of Durk, King Von.