Dusty Locane

Dusty Locane was raised in "a good home," not "subjected to the harsh realities of living in the hood," in Canarsie, Brooklyn, New York.[6] His mother is Trinidadian, which led to him listening to soca music as a child, in addition to hip hop and R&B.[7] He attended college for a year before getting expelled and initially wanted to pursue a career in basketball. He then spent some time in jail, and started considering a music career seriously upon being released.[8] He is affiliated with the Rollin' 60s Neighborhood Crips.[9]

Dusty Locane released his debut single, "Rollin n Controllin Freestyle," on August 7, 2020. On January 8, 2021, DJ Akademiks posted two videos of Locane rapping to his millions of followers on Instagram,[10] thus introducing him to new listeners. By December 2021, the song had 200 million streams and was certified gold by the RIAA.[11][12]

Dusty Locane announced that his debut album, Untamed, was to be released on November 19, 2021.[13] The album was postponed, however, out of respect for rapper Young Dolph, who was murdered on November 17.[14][15] It was finally released on December 3, 2021.[15] The album contained 20 songs and was generally received rather positively by critics.

Locane has been compared to fellow Brooklyn rapper Pop Smoke many times because of their similar voices, rapping styles, and overall presence.[16][10] It was rumored that him and Smoke were actually cousins; however, this rumor was later disproven by Smoke's brother, Obasi Jackson, who denied being related to Locane.[17] Locane was reportedly a close acquaintance of Pop Smoke before his death, though, and the two attended the same school at some point.[18]