Imagine recording a vocal take through like a
really laggy laptop and USB microphone that you
literally describe yourself as trash Yeah, that's
really how it started right and then imagine
that exact same vocal take eventually securing
you a Multi -million dollar major label deal
and platinum plaques exactly platinum plaques
a spot on the billboard hot 100. It's crazy so
today For you listening right now, we are mapping
the blueprint of modern music success. We really
are. And to do it, we're taking a deep dive into
a comprehensive biographical and discographical
Wikipedia article on the artist Snot. And for
the record, that's stylized with a dollar sign
and seven S. Right, the dollar sign Snot. And
I got to say, it really is. the ultimate case
study. Oh, absolutely. Like, if you want to understand
the exact mechanisms of how the internet has
fundamentally rewired the entire music industry
over, I don't know, the last decade, you have
to look at a career trajectory like his. Because
it just completely bypasses all the old gatekeepers.
Entirely. The traditional path is gone here.
Yeah. I mean, how does a teenager in Florida
go from a bedroom setup that barely works to
collaborating with absolute hip hop heavyweights?
I am just so excited to share this incredible
journey with you today because the origin story
is, well, it's crucial. It really sets up everything
that comes later. Right. So he was born Edie
Junior Edward on December 16th, 1997, born in
Brooklyn, New York to Haitian and Dominican parents.
But when he was seven years old, he moves down
to Lake Worth Beach, Florida. Yeah, South Florida.
And it's there basically during his high school
years that the foundation for his entire sound
gets poured. And what's really fascinating here
is the incredibly diverse, almost contradictory
musical diet he was consuming during those formative
teenage years. Oh, literally. According to the
sources, he was listening to this massive spectrum
of artists. So on one hand, you have alternative
rap and cloud rap pioneers, guys like Xavier
Wolf, Bones, and Young Lean. OK, let's unpack
this right away. Because for anyone listening
who isn't deep into internet rap subgenres, what
does that actually mean? Like, when we say he's
listening to cloud rap pioneers, what does that
sound like mechanically? Well, cloud rap is pretty
much exactly what it sounds like. It's very hazy.
It's ethereal. Lots of atmosphere. Exactly. The
producers use a lot of ambient soundscapes, heavy
reverb, and these slow, almost hypnotic tempos.
And the vocals... They often blend directly into
the beat rather than sitting cleanly on top of
it. Right, they're like washed out in the mix.
Yeah, so he's absorbing that highly atmospheric
sound, but at the exact same time he's listening
to absolute mainstream titans like Lil Wayne.
Who is totally different. Lil Wayne is entirely
focused on vocal presence. Right, razor sharp.
punchline heavy lyricism. Aggression. Exactly.
Wayne is right in your face. And then you throw
in the genre bending weird, eccentric chord progressions
of Tyler, the creator. Oh, man. Early Tyler is
so disruptive. Totally. And crucially, he's also
digging into gritty, heavily influential Memphis
underground artists. Like who? Like Shotty Pimp
and the legendary Group Three Six Mafia. Okay,
yeah. And that Memphis sound is really defined
by dark, low -fi production, those heavy 808
cowbells, and fast triplet -style flows. So his
brain is basically this super collider for underground,
alternative, and mainstream rap. all of it happening
simultaneously. Yeah, it's a huge mix. But listening
to all these different styles is one thing, right?
Actually figuring out how to make it yourself
is another. And the way he starts is just, it's
so relatable. It's the classic internet kid story.
Yeah. He gets introduced to recording by his
friend, who went by the name Wetback Manny. Manny
was already uploading tracks to SoundCloud and
physically showed Snot how to, you know... record
and use a microphone. Right, and Snot starts
doing it by himself in 2016. But the technology
he was working with was, as you mentioned in
the intro, less than ideal. Yeah, a bit rough.
He explicitly states in an interview that he
had a USB mic, and it was, quote, kind of trash.
I love that honesty so much. But Snot says something
really interesting about this early period. He
mentions that his friend Manny eventually got
a condenser mic. Right. And Snot says, quote,
so I guess I got lucky. And I really want to
push back on that idea of luck with you. Oh,
really? How so? Well, he calls getting the mic
lucky, right? I mean, sure, it's lucky your buddy
bought better gear. But $1 ,000 condenser mic
is just going to capture a bad singer in crystal
clear high definition. That's a very fair point.
It doesn't write the song for you. So was it
really luck? That is a crucial distinction. And
honestly, your skepticism is spot on. I don't
think it was just luck at all. Right. If we look
at the mechanics of audio production, a cheap
USB microphone compresses everything. It clips
when you get too loud. It picks up the hum of
your air conditioner. The terrible laptop fan
noise. Yes, exactly. It flattens the entire dynamic
range of the human voice. But. A condenser microphone,
on the other hand, captures the full raw nuanced
frequency of a vocal performance. It's just a
transparent window. Precisely. What that upgraded
microphone actually did was remove the friction
between his creative vision, which again is heavily
informed by that incredibly diverse musical diet,
and the final product. Ah, so the vision was
already there. The talent, the ear for melody,
the understanding of flow and cadence to somehow
blend Tyler, the creator, with Resix Mafia. All
of that was already developing in his head. Wow.
The condenser mic just finally allowed the world
to hear it clearly without the distraction of
just, you know, bad audio quality. Which brings
us to the exact moment the world actually did
start hearing it. So we're moving from those
early experiments into 2018. Right. Snot is armed
with his better equipment, he's got his varied
influences locked in, and on April 24th, 2018,
he self -releases his debut EP on SoundCloud.
Called The Tissue Files. Yes, The Tissue Files.
And it's really important to look at the mechanics
of this specific release. Okay, tell me. Because
even as a DIY artist operating out of a bedroom,
he isn't entirely isolated. This isn't just one
guy doing everything in a vacuum. Right, it's
not a solo mission. Exactly. The Tissue Files
features guest verses from artists named KamerNazi
and Subjects. And the production is handled by
this whole decentralized network of internet
producers. Like people he's just meeting online?
Yeah, names like Frexija, Kaji, WinTruz, and
YZ. It's a completely digital community. Right.
They don't need to fly to a million dollar studio
in Los Angeles to make an EP. They're just sending
files back and forth online. Precisely. He is
building a highly collaborative network within
in the underground internet scene, he's essentially
establishing his own infrastructure. But the
real seismic shift -like, the moment the foundation
actually pays off, happens just a few months
later, in September 2018. Oh, yes! He drops a
single, produced by YZ, called Gosha. Gosha is
the breakout. It is the absolute inflection point
of his entire career. It's massive. This is the
track that catches fire online and eventually
goes RIA platinum. But here's where it gets really
interesting. Gosha goes viral, right? It's blowing
up on SoundCloud and social media. But internet
virality is often just a flash in the pan. True.
It happens every day. Exactly. So the other half
of the modern success equation is mainstream
media cross -pollination. And in 2019, Snot gets
a massive bump when his single Billy Boy is featured
in the pilot episode of HBO's hit teen drama,
Euphoria. And we have to talk about how huge
that is. Securing a sync placement, which literally
means synchronizing your song to play in the
background of a TV show or movie, is always a
big deal for an independent artist. Oh, tapping.
But Euphoria, for context, wasn't just a popular
show. It was a cultural juggernaut. Yeah, it
was everywhere. It essentially defined the aesthetic,
the fashion, and the sonic landscape for Gen
Z at that exact moment in time. It's the ultimate
tastemaker, like getting a prime time Super Bowl
commercial, but for kids on the internet. Exactly.
Having your track placed in the pilot episode
when the audience is being introduced to this
world for the very first time is an extraordinary
milestone. It's incredible. It completely legitimizes
the Internet hype in the eyes of the mainstream.
And the result of this massive one -two punch,
the viral Internet success of Gosha and the HBO
cultural cosign, is that in 2019 Snot signs a
major label deal. with 300 Entertainment. Which
is a huge label. Right. But this raises a huge
question about the modern music industry. We
just watched a kid go from a DIY SoundCloud EP
to a viral platinum hit to a major television
sink entirely on his own. Yeah. So what is the
actual function of the record label at this stage?
Like, did signing to 300 Entertainment makes
not a star or did the Internet and HBO already
do all the heavy lifting? That is an excellent
question because, you know, the traditional narrative
is that a record label discovers you and builds
you from scratch. They mold you in their image.
Right. But in Snod's case, by the time 300 Entertainment
comes to the table, their risk profile is incredibly
low. Snod has already built the audience. The
fans are already there. He's already refined
his sound and he's already proven his market
viability. Right. He's basically handing them
a finished product. So what are they actually
providing him? Infrastructure and scale. OK,
scale. The Internet can give you a viral moment.
Sure. But a major label like 300 Entertainment
has entire departments dedicated to radio pitching.
Oh, right. Radio is still a thing. And they have
established relationships with the major streaming
platforms to get your songs onto those massive
algorithmic editorial playlists. The ones with
millions of followers. Exactly. They handle physical
distribution, international marketing budgets,
legal clearances. The label isn't lighting the
fire. They are simply pouring high octane gasoline
on a fire that Snot already started with his
friend's microphone. Wow. That makes a lot of
sense. The product is the same, but the distribution
network completely mutates. Perfectly said. However,
once you have that major label backing, the pressure
completely shifts. Oh, definitely. The label
essentially bought into the hype of a viral moment.
But the music industry is totally littered with
one -hit wonders who had a great SoundCloud track,
a cool TV placement, and then just disappeared
entirely. Yeah, we've seen it a hundred times.
To survive the 300 entertainment machine, Snot
had to prove he wasn't just a singles artist.
He had to prove he could build a cohesive, full
-length world. Which takes us right into 2020.
This is the year he truly defines his sound.
In March, he drops his debut studio album titled
Tragedy Plus L. And this album is where we see
him consolidating his early gains. How so? Well,
he smartly includes the established hits. Gosha
is on there and another track called Megan to
sort of anchor the project. But he also significantly
expands his collaborative circle. Bringing in
more people. Yeah, he works with Maggie Lindemann
on a track called Moon and Stars and with Wifus
Funeral on Beretta. And both of those collaborations
end up being certified gold by the RIA. He basically
proves the model works over a longer runtime.
He does. But he doesn't stop there. By October
of that exact same year, just seven months after
his debut, he releases his second studio album.
Right. Beautiful Havoc. Yes. Beautiful Havoc.
And this is the one that officially charts, hitting
number 172 on the Billboard 200. And he brings
in these heavyweight features, guys like Denzel
Curry, Ian Dior, and Flo Millie. And that collab
with Flo Millie on the track Mean also goes gold.
It's just hit after hit. And beyond the audio,
he pairs the sonic expansion with top tier visual
branding. Oh, videos. For beautiful havoc, he
gets Cole Bennett to direct the music videos
for Revenge and Mean under the lyrical lemonade
banner. OK, let's talk about that visual element
for a second, because for anyone listening outside
of this specific subculture, they might not realize
how massive that is. Why is Cole Bennett such
a big deal? So for this specific generation of
hip -hop, a lyrical lemonade video directed by
Cole Bennett is essentially a rite of passage.
It's that huge. It's the modern equivalent of
having your video put into heavy rotation on
MTV's TRL in the late 90s. Oh wow. Bennett has
a very distinct visual style. He often blends
this hyper colorful polished cinematography with
really playful almost DIY looking animations.
It perfectly matches the energy of internet rap.
Exactly. It visually represents the bridge between
underground internet culture and high budget
mainstream production. I love that. When Cole
Bennett directs your video, it is the ultimate
visual stamp of approval. It signals to the entire
ecosystem that this artist is a major legitimate
Okay, so he's got the visual stamp of approval,
and he's charting. But I really want to look
closely at the actual sound he's pushing on these
albums. Sure. Because the Wikipedia article lists
an incredibly dense, almost contradictory mix
of genres to describe his music. It's a long
list. We're talking hip -hop, trap, lo -fi, chill
-out, emo rap, cloud rap, and chill wave. Yeah.
To me, that sounds like an architectural nightmare.
Like, how do you take the aggressive, heavy,
distorted 808 bass of trap music and physically
layer it with the relaxed atmospheric acoustic
vibes of lo -fi and chill wave, plus the emotional
vulnerability of emo rap? It sounds impossible
on paper. Right. How does an artist juggle so
many contrasting vibes without the albums just
feeling like a chaotic, unlistenable mess? That
is the defining question of his artistry. And
the secret to why it doesn't sound like a mess
lies entirely in the generational shift we talked
about earlier. Okay, tell me more. Think about
how you and I might have grown up consuming music.
Um, probably on terrestrial radio or, you know,
buying specific CDs at the store. Right, and
terrestrial radio was highly segregated by genre.
You only heard rock on one dial and you only
heard hip hop on another. Totally. They never
crossed over. But Gen Z listeners and snot himself
grew up in the era of streaming platforms. Their
musical consumption is dictated by highly curated
mood based Internet playlists. Oh, that's brilliant.
Their listening habits are completely post genre.
Precisely. They are entirely used to hearing
a heavy, aggressive trap banger immediately followed
by a soft acoustic lo fi track because they're
both on a Spotify playlist titled like late night
drives. Exactly. The connective tissue isn't
the genre. It's the mood. That makes so much
sense. So when Snot mechanically synthesizes
all these genres, putting a trap drum pattern
underneath a kill wave synthesizer pad, it isn't
chaotic to his audience. It's completely natural.
It reflects exactly how they already consume
music. Wow. He is literally the human embodiment
of a mood playlist. He really is. And that explains
why Beautiful Havoc is such an incredibly fitting
title for his second album. It is a beautifully
orchestrated collision of all his diverse Internet
era influences. And that mood based approach
is exactly what catapults him into massive mainstream
crossover territory. Right. Which brings us to
his career from twenty twenty one to twenty twenty
four. This is where he hits the absolute ethereal
heights of the industry. The big leagues. In
April twenty twenty one, he drops the track Whipsky,
featuring Little Skies, and hits number twenty
five on the bubbling under hot 100 chart. Now,
for anyone who doesn't track Billboard Mechanics,
what is the bubbling under chart? It is exactly
what it sounds like. It's the chart that tracks
the top 25 songs that have not quite made it
onto the main Billboard Hot 100 yet. Oh. It is
essentially the waiting room for major, undeniable
mainstream success. And he doesn't stay in that
waiting room for long at all. A month later,
in May 2021, he collaborates with the artist
Cochise on the track Tell Him. And that's the
one. This is the one that completely breaks down
the door. It hits number 64 on the Billboard
Hot 100, and it eventually goes two times platinum.
Two million units sold. Huge numbers. Then, capitalizing
on that momentum, in February 2022, he drops
his third album, titled Ethereal, which climbs
up to number 66 on the Billboard 200. But what
is really striking to me about Ethereal isn't
just the chart position. What stands out to you?
It's the roster of featured artists he manages
to assemble. We are talking about ASP Rocky on
the track Doja. We're talking about Teddy Jones,
Trippie Redd, Kevin Abstract from Brockhampton,
and Joey Badass and Juicy J. So what does this
all mean? Because I look at this progression
going from self -releasing on SoundCloud to hitting
the bubbling under chart to cracking the Hot
100, and it feels like the music industry equivalent
of going from selling homemade t -shirts out
of your car trunk to suddenly having a runway
show at Paris Fashion Week. It's a crazy jump.
The product, his voice is the same, but the platform
is totally unrecognizable. But I really want
to challenge you on this specific feature list.
What does it actually signal to the listener
when legacy acts, critical darlings, and absolute
pioneers like Juicy J and Joey Badass jump on
an album with a cloud rap kid from the internet?
It signals a profound level of industry respect,
but more importantly, it represents the closing
of a generational loop. The closing of a loop.
Yeah. Think all the way back to the beginning
of this deep dive to our discussion about his
early influences in Florida. The super collider
of genres. When Snot was in high school, recording
on a laggy laptop with a trash USB mic. What
was he listening to? He was heavily influenced
by the gritty, lo -fi Memphis sound of Three
Six Mafia. Oh, wow. And Juicy J is a founding
member of Three Six Mafia. Exactly. It is a massive
full circle moment. That's incredible. When a
pioneer like Juicy J, who, by the way, built
his own career in the 90s by independently selling
underground cassette tapes out of the trunk of
his car. Just like the t -shirt analogy. Exactly.
When he collaborates with Snot, who built his
career by independently uploading MP3s to SoundCloud,
it bridges the gap. between two generations of
DIY artists. They use completely different technology,
separated by 20 years, but the independent ethos
is exactly the same. Yes. Juicy J, Joey Badass,
and ASAP Rocky are essentially validating his
entire journey. They are telling the traditional
industry, this kid isn't just an internet fad.
His sound, this beautiful havoc of lo -fi, trap,
and cloud rap is a legitimate evolution of hip
hop. And armed with that validation, Snot just
keeps going. After Ethereal, He proves his longevity.
He dropped singles like Simple in late 2022,
and he eventually releases his fourth studio
album, Viceroy, in July of 2024. He just keeps
building. She has taken an incredibly volatile
internet moment and turned it into a sustainable
long -term career. Which brings us to the ultimate
payoff of this entire deep dive. For you the
listener sitting there right now taking this
all in. It's so important. Snoss discography
isn't just a list of songs and dates on a Wikipedia
page. It is a tangible proven map of how independent
art can conquer the mainstream. It really is.
Edie Junior -Edward took a scattered chaotic
array of influences, everything from Tyler, the
creator, to Shoddy Pimp, and he channeled them
through the absolute most basic accessible technology
available to him. But trash wank. He didn't wait
for permission. He didn't wait for a million
dollar studio budget. He just started recording.
And through collaboration and Internet infrastructure,
he manifested a multi -platinum reality. And
that is the biggest takeaway for you today. No
matter what field you are in, whether you're
making music, writing code, starting a business,
or creating any kind of art, starting with your
own version of a trash USB mic is often the first
necessary step to greatness. You have to start
somewhere. You do not need the pristine glass
boardroom to begin. The execution of your idea
and the authenticity of your varied influences
matter so much more than having perfect equipment
on day one. A great idea will survive a bad microphone.
That is undeniably true, but if we pull back
and look at the macro level of the entire music
industry based on the sources we've examined
today, it leaves us with a rather provocative
thought to chew on. Oh, okay. Let's hear it.
Given everything we've just discussed, given
that Snot built his foundational audience, secured
a viral platinum hit, and landed a culture -defining
HBO sync placement, all entirely through his
own hustle, a friend's microphone, and the internet
before he ever released a major label debut.
What is the actual role of traditional music
industry gatekeepers today? Right. If the internet
algorithms, the underground producer networks,
and the listeners themselves have already decided
what is going to be a platinum hit before the
label even gets involved, are the major labels
no longer the actual tastemakers? It certainly
makes you wonder. Are they now just frantically
chasing kids in their bedrooms, hoping to catch
a ride on a rocket ship that has already taken
off? It really appears that the power dynamic
has fundamentally shifted. The internet has essentially
outsourced the job of finding new talent to the
audience itself. It really has. Because at the
end of the day, that million -dollar corporate
blueprint might look incredibly impressive. But
as we've just seen, it can easily be completely
outmaneuvered by a kid with vision and internet
connection and a microphone that sounds just
a little bit like garbage.