It’s been nearly seven years since XXXTentacion was tragically shot and killed during an armed robbery in Deerfield Park, Florida, in June 2018 at the age of 20.
Throughout his meteoric rise, X — born Jahseh Onfroy — established a deep connection to millions of fans as one of the leaders of the SoundCloud generation of rap while also vulnerably opening up about his mental health and battles with depression.
X committed full-time to rap in 2016 when he moved in with fellow Florida rapper Denzel Curry and exploded onto the mainstream scene in early 2017 with the re-release of his hostile “Look At Me!” single, which blew up on SoundCloud before hitting DSPs.
The Rojas on the Beat and Jimmy Duval-produced hit launched X’s career into another stratosphere as his mugshot cover art was seemingly inescapable on social media with “Look At Me!” reaching No. 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was one of Billboard‘s Songs That Defined the Decade for the 2010s.
He even attempted to feud with Drake over allegations that the 6 God imitated his “Look At Me!” flow on More Life‘s “KMT” track in 2017. Before his death, X released a pair of studio albums with 17 and ?. In the week following his murder, “SAD!” rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 to posthumously give X his first chart-topper in June 2018.
While his talent as a musician is undeniable, XXXTentacion’s legacy remains a complicated one due to the myriad of mounting legal charges against him including domestic violence, assault, witness tampering and robbery. At the time of his passing, X faced 15 felonies originally stemming from an arrest in 2016.
Thursday (Jan. 23) marks what would have been XXXTentacion’s 27th birthday. From the melancholy to the rage, there was no telling how far X was going to push his artistry in his 20s. Check out our list of what we feel are the late rapper’s 10 best songs below.
XXXTentacion shows off the range of his artistry as he delivers one of his most heartbreaking songs over icy piano keys, while singing about the pain striking a hole in his chest. “Girl you’re making it hard for me,” PnB Rock croons in agony to assist on the chorus. PnB and X teamed up on many occasions, however, the Philly native was also tragically murdered four years after XXX in 2022.
X takes listeners on a two-minute space expedition throughout “Moonlight.” He flips the trippy instrumental in a strong rap song, which finds him opening up about a turbulent relationship with a girl falling victim to the poisonous mentality of those around them. It’s emotive tracks like this that feel potent and also still effortless from the Florida native.
XXXTentacion and Joey Bada$$ seem like an unlikely combination on its face, but the duo put their bars to the test as X tapped more into his rap side while teaming up with Brooklyn’s lyrical savant. X was clearly inspired by Joey and brought his A-game on “Infinity (888)” while declaring himself the “realest since Kennedy” over P. Soul’s thumping drums. X and Joey even planned to complete a joint project before this death.
The mental warfare X dealt with made music a cathartic release for him. “Everybody Dies in Their Nightmares” delves into the depths of Triple X’s psyche. He peels back the layers on his extreme emotional swings. “Only time I feel pain, when I’m feelin’ love/ That’s why it’s tatted on my face that I’m damn numb,” he speedily raps over the ambient production. The dark track showcases another weapon in X’s artistic repertoire on 17.
X’s gift was being able to turn his pain and emotions into poetry in motion. And he did it in a way that the average fan couldn’t spell out themselves, which endeared the Florida rapper to millions across the globe. A great example of this is “Jocelyn Flores.” The 17 standout — an album that grabbed Kendrick Lamar’s attention and caused him to run to Twitter — saw X look inward and wrestle with romance and frightening thoughts of suicide, which he poured into a powerful song.
Another hidden gem from a neophyte XXXTentacion, who released “Amy Winehouse” to his SoundCloud in 2015. The devilish track follows X bragging about having sex with one of his friend’s girlfriends. X’s muffled flow sounds possessed as he slowly speaks directly into your soul, while piano keys play out like a scene from a horror movie.
“SAD!” was X’s only top 10 hit while he was alive and the week following his passing in June 2018, the poignant track launched to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 as fans celebrated the life of Jahseh Onfroy. It became the first posthumous chart-topper since The Notorious B.I.G.’s “Mo Money Mo Problems.”
The John Cunningham-produced song cuts deep, as X grapples with losing a lover and dealing with the depths of depression while coming to terms with the severed relationship. “Suicide if you ever try to let go, uh/ I’m sad, I know, yeah,” he warbles on the chorus.
A pure look into X’s early creative process. “Vice City” is a crown jewel that fans hold near and dear to their hearts. It was the first track made available on X’s SoundCloud account in 2014 before eventually finding a home on streaming services eight years later.
A teenaged XXXTentacion found the free “Logic Type Beat” online and sped it up a bit before pouring his emotions out. “If you stated opinions, then bones would begin to shatter,” he raps about his outspoken nature. How was a kid operating at this level as a 16-year-old?
XXXTentacion and Trippie Redd were a lethal combination. “F**k Love” is the best example of their fruitful chemistry and the see-saw battle with a nauseating romance remains some of the most prolific work from either of the duo’s careers. It’s eerie every time hearing that X’s death anniversary is also Trippie’s birthday. The SoundCloud pioneers’ anthem went diamond in 2023, as X helped welcome his close collaborator into the diamond club from the afterlife.
The abrasive “Look At Me!” smacks listeners in the face. X’s breakout hit was a lightning rod for conversation and fit with his polarizing nature. Released in 2015 and rising to SoundCloud fame before being repackaged for streaming services two years later, “Look at Me!” served as a distorted anthem for a rebellious generation of rap fans.
The conversation broke down Florida’s regional barriers and became a national hit that left an indelible mark on the hip-hop landscape while cracking the Hot 100’s top 40. Looking back, it’s one of the signature tracks that defined X’s DIY artistry.
“The biggest lesson out of that song is to teach kids you don’t need anybody and you can do it yourself,” co-producer Rojas on the Beat told Billboard in 2019. “You don’t need a big studio, mix, and master, or spend big money on a mic to make a hit.”
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