Cousin Stizz
Cousin Stizz performing in August 2016
Cousin Stizz performing in August 2016
Background information
Birth nameStephen Goss
Born (1992-03-15) March 15, 1992
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
OriginDorchester, Massachusetts, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Rapper
  • songwriter
Years active2014–present
LabelsRCA
Websitecousinstizz.com

Stephen Goss (born March 15, 1992), known professionally as Cousin Stizz, is an American rapper and songwriter. He is from Dorchester, Massachusetts and signed to RCA Records.

Early life

Stephen Goss was born on March 15, 1992, in Boston, Massachusetts. He grew up in the Boston, Massachusetts neighborhood of Dorchester. A childhood friend gave him the nickname "Cousin Stizz" when he was 12. After a close friend was shot to death,[1] he began to behave recklessly. He attended Reading Memorial High School, graduating in 2010.[2]

Career

In his late teens, he began freestyling with friends in a local cypher series and released music as part of the group Pilot Nation later that year. A boost to his drive to turn rapping into a full-time career came in 2013 with the early success of friend and fellow Boston rapper Michael Christmas. In 2014 after months of recording, Stizz released his first official single as a solo artist, "Shoutout."[3][4]

His debut mixtape as a solo artist, Suffolk County, released June 1, 2015, received over 12 million listens on SoundCloud. Wide notice also came with the release on the internet of a video of Drake playing Stizz's single "Shoutout" at the star's birthday party.[5][6] His next mixtape, MONDA, released in the summer of 2016, was named one of DigBoston's Best Local Albums of 2016.[4]

He signed a record deal with RCA Records in late 2016, and his third release and first on RCA, One Night Only, came out on July 12, 2017. It includes features from Offset (of Migos), G-Eazy, Big Leano, and Buddy, and production credits from Tee-WaTT, Tedd Boyd, Vinylz, FrancisGotHeat, Smash David, WondaGurl, and Dave Sava6e.[7] Three weeks after the album's release, the single "Headlock" (feat. Offset) had been streamed over 11.3 million times on Spotify, reaching No. 12 on Billboard's Next Big Sound chart, while viewers on YouTube had watched Stizz's videos (combined) over 8 million times. Author Shea Serrano of The Ringer is an active fan of the rapper and also his No. 1 fan in the entire world, calling his music inspiring.[8]

In December 2018, he was crowned "Artist of the Year" at the Boston Music Awards. With his victory, Stizz became the first hip-hop musician to receive the awards ceremony's highest honor.[9]

Discography

Studio albums

List of albums, with selected details
Title Details
One Night Only
  • Released: July 10, 2017
  • Label: RCA
  • Format: Digital download, streaming
Trying to Find My Next Thrill
  • Released: August 14, 2019
  • Label: RCA
  • Format: Digital download, streaming
Just For You
  • Released: February 11, 2022
  • Label: Stizz Music Inc.
  • Format: Digital download, streaming

Mixtapes

List of mixtapes, with selected details
Title Details
Suffolk County
  • Released: June 1, 2015
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: Digital download, streaming
Monda
  • Released: July 13, 2016
  • Label: Self-released
  • Format: Digital download, streaming

Extended plays

List of EPs, with selected details
Title Details
All Adds Up
  • Released: August 17, 2018
  • Label: RCA
  • Format: Digital download, streaming
Cold Times
  • Released: September 20, 2018
  • Label: RCA
  • Format: Digital download, streaming

References

  1. ↑ "Cousin Stizz Is the Hypnotic Rapper Giving Boston a Shout Out". Vice.com. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Cousin Stizz Talks Music, Racism in Boston & Getting Nods from Drake - YouTube". YouTube. Archived from the original on June 28, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  3. ↑ Tara Mahadevan, "Cousin Stizz Is the Hypnotic Rapper Giving Boston a Shout Out", Noisey, August 21, 2015, retrieved February 26, 2017
  4. 1 2 Nina Corcoran, "Cousin Stizz: How a Dorchester Rapper Built Boston Back Up", DigBoston, July 13, 2017, retrieved February 26, 2017
  5. ↑ Martín Caballero, "Dorchester's Cousin Stizz takes the spotlight, quietly", Boston Globe, September 4, 2015, retrieved February 26, 2017
  6. ↑ Alex Frandsen, "Can Cousin Stizz put his hometown on the hip-hop map?", Boston Globe, May 19, 2017, retrieved February 26, 2017
  7. ↑ Lindsey India, "Listen to Cousin Stizz's New Project 'One Night Only'", XXL, July 12, 2017, retrieved February 26, 2017
  8. ↑ Shea Serrano, "The Inspirational Rap of Cousin Stizz', The Ringer, November 28, 2017, retrieved April 8, 2018
  9. ↑ Feldberg, Isaac. "Cousin Stizz named artist of the year at Boston Music Awards – The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
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