Tione Jayden Merritt (born: April 30, 2001), better known professionally as Lil Tjay, is an American rapper known for his music.
Life[]
Merritt was born on April 30, 2001, in New York City, New York. He was raised by a single mother and had two younger siblings, in a "roomy" apartment. He described himself as the problematic child out of the three, getting into small crimes and fights. At 15, he was arrested for a robbery and was sent to a youth detention center. During his arrest, he wrote songs.
2022 Shooting[]
On June 22, 2022, Merritt was involved in a shooting where he was shot multiple times in an attempted robbery. He was flown to a hospital and underwent surgery. On the same day, police arrested the shooter, Mohamed Konate, who was also hit by gunfire. On June 23, it was reported Merritt was still unconscious, with rumors surfacing he was paralyzed or brain dead. On August 24, 2022, he uploaded an update video on his social media accounts, telling viewers he was doing better, and was "going to come back stronger than ever". He released "Beat the Odds" on August 26, where he addresses the shooting.
Controversy[]
2023 Arrest[]
On January 16, 2023, Merritt was arrested in the Bronx and was placed in police custody, following a traffic stop. Merritt was on his way to film with fellow rapper Ice Spice at the time of the arrest. The police found a handgun in the vehicle, before arresting him. He was charged with weapon possession and a court date was set for February 14.[1] Merritt's attorney, Dawn Florio, claims the gun found by police does not belong to Merritt.[2] She also claimed that the search conducted by officers was conducted illegally, as the car was parked legally on the street and Merritt was a passenger in the car.[1]
Career[]
Merritt wrote one of his most popular songs, "Resume", during his arrest. He began releasing music on SoundCloud, including "Resume". In 2018, he competed in Coast 2 Coast LIVE NYC All Ages Edition, where his performance caught the eye of record label A&R, one of the judges of the competition. He later released "Brothers", becoming his biggest song at the time.
In 2018, he released his debut EP titled No Comparison. He released the EP State of Emergency in 2020, focusing heavily on drill music. "Zoo York", a song on the EP featuring Fivio Foreign and Pop Smoke, was one of the popular songs of the EP. He appeared on a number of songs with Pop Smoke, such as "Mood Swings", "War", and "Mary Jane".
He has worked with artist such as , Polo G, PGF Cam, Fivio Foreign and many more.
Channel[]
Merritt created his channel on September 16, 2017, and he uploaded his first video on February 11, 2021. He uploads music videos, audio, and lyric videos.
References[]
