DRAM

Germany-born, Hampton, Virginia-bred rapper/singer D.R.A.M. (it stands for Does Real-Ass Music) was born with the considerably less street-sounding name Shelley Marshaun Massenburg-Smith. He released his first single, "Cha Cha," in 2015, sharing his good-time vibes and offbeat, fun-loving persona with the world at large for the first time, but the song went largely under the radar. It was his next single, 2016's giddy, goofy "Broccoli" (featuring Lil Yachty) that broke D.R.A.M. through to the big time, reaching No. 5 in the pop charts and hitting the top spot on the R&B charts. His debut album, Big Baby D.R.A.M. was released on Atlantic/Empire later the same year and made a Top 20 placement. Featuring guest appearances by Young Thug and Erykah Badu, the album showed some other sides to D.R.A.M. but it also earned him some admiring comparisons to old-school clown prince Biz Markie. Though the "Broccoli" single ultimately earned double-Platinum status, the next two singles from D.R.A.M.'s debut album, "Cute" and "Cash Machine" made no mark on the charts at all. D.R.A.M. has also made guest appearances on tracks by a number of other artists, including Chance the Rapper, Donnie Trumpet & The Social Experiment, and Remy Banks.