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Chicago’s BabyChiefDoIt quickly rising through the rap ranks

On a scorching and sunny Sunday in June, Chicago emerging rapper BabyChiefDoIt had one of the most viral performances of the entire Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash festival.

The 17-year-old rapper from the south suburbs owned the Culture Kings stage through his seemingly boundless energy and off-the-chart charisma as thousands of sweaty fans chanted songs from his mixtapes “Animals Only” (2024) and “Zoo Life” (2025) word for word. But when BabyChiefDoIt debuted his self-produced track “Went West,” the crowd instantaneously screamed for more.

The performance quickly went viral on YouTube, and currently has more than 13 million views. Soon, “Went West” became his first hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

“I wasn’t nervous at all. I probably figured out that’s what I wanted to do the night before, sitting with my manager and my DJ, just going through what songs we were going to do. I was like, we gotta slide ‘Went West’ somewhere in there. We all looked at each other and was like, ‘Let’s do it.’ That was a big risk, but I had to do it. And when I did it, the reaction was way bigger than I ever expected,” said BabyChief, whose given name is Jayden Jones.

On Saturday, BabyChief is bringing the intensity he brought to Summer Smash to Avondale Music Hall in his first headlining show, which is sold out. BabyChief says fans can look forward to a lot of surprises. With his forthcoming yet-to-be-titled debut album dropping this fall, he’s giving his Chicago fans a first listen and promises the upcoming record — his biggest yet at nearly 20 tracks — will be “his best work” compared to his two mixtapes, which he admits were “thrown together.” This time, he said, he put in a lot of time “from top to bottom” on songs like “Went West” and “The Viper.”

It’s been a breakout year for BabyChiefDoIt, from being highlighted as an ascending star by XXL Magazine and Billboard to collaborating with Chance the Rapper on his latest album, “Star Line.”

Chance The Rapper, seen here performing at the Special Olympics 50th Anniversary Concert at Northerly Island in 2018, featured local teen rapper BabyChiefDoIt on his latest album.

Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times file

Since 2023, BabyChiefDoIt has been sharing his songs on SoundCloud, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram, carving his own unique space online. He first made his mark in 2024, when his song “Rollin” became the No. 1 song on Billboard’s TikTok Chart, and later that year, he signed to Artist Partner Group. After dropping his two mixtapes and garnering critical acclaim for his dynamic rapping ability, he landed on the cover of XXL Magazine’s Inaugural Freshman Class of 2025, hip-hop’s annual class of rising rappers who are believed to be the future of mainstream hip-hop. Not only was he the youngest rapper of the 2025 Freshman Class, but he is also the youngest Chicago rapper to have landed the Freshman Class cover since Chief Keef’s addition in 2013. He also made Billboard’s Rookie of the Month in September.

His newfound fame still doesn’t feel real to him yet. Even though, by his account, he enjoys every part of the honeymoon phase of being a rising rap star, he’s still adjusting to all eyes on him.

“It still don’t really feel real yet. I kind of be in awe that people really look at me as an idol. People really getting excited to see me. I done been out in public nowadays and people done full-on screamed. And I turned my head and I’m like [all this attention] for me,”” he said.

Even the success of his hit song “Went West” surprised him. “That was the biggest growth I’ve ever had, a huge growth spurt in my career. It really helped me realize that there’s a lot of people that still don’t know me, that just found out about me. That was an eye-opener,” said BabyChief.

BabyChief also caught the attention of Chatham’s own Chance The Rapper, who performed after the teen’s set at Summer Smash. The two connected through fellow rapper and Chance’s younger brother, Taylor Bennett. The young rapper recalls Bennett telling him he has a song for him on Chance’s long-awaited “Star Line” album, but needed his verse ASAP. BabyChief finished the verse in New York City, with Chance meeting him to finish the song. That song would become their rebellious duet “Drapetomania.”

“I’m really appreciative to be a part of that,” he said.

Putting a Gen Z spin on classic hip-hop

Throughout his childhood, music was always a part of BabyChief’s life as his parents often played ‘90s Chicago hip-hop around him while being heavily exposed to drill music by his peers. In fifth grade, he was a part of the drumline in his school band and even tried his hand at singing in the choir, although his singing days would only last for about a week.

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, like many other 12- and 13-year-olds, he was stuck in his room with little to do. Eventually, he started dabbling with music software like Bandlab and uploading his songs to SoundCloud.

Musically, he stands out for his quick-witted lyricism and animated delivery. While he raps about the violence he’s experienced and witnessed at his young age, he also celebrates life and having fun. He intentionally avoids the typical elements of drill, like disrespecting the dead and broadcasting true-to-life crime. Instead he takes a fresher approach to street music, bringing together traditional hip-hop and drill and infusing it with his own colorful and eclectic personality, akin to the late West Coast rap legend Eazy-E — with a Gen Z take. He also enjoys R&B and hyperpop, as he’s a fan of North Side star 2Hollis.

BabyChief is also into researching ‘80s, ’90s, and ’00s hip-hop. From pioneers from Chicago like Common and Twista, to Detroit’s Wax-A-Million (whose cult classic “I Ain’t Got No Panties on the Dance Flooo” was remade by BabyChiefDoIt into the hilarious “Pull Them Panties Off”), he’s been influenced by the care they often put into their music, with a “developed sound” that he was unfamiliar with.

“I learned [there] was a real Chicago music scene before the drill rap, because that’s what I came up into, so that’s all I really knew. It was a bigger side to Chicago rap than just the drill, so that was kind of eye-opening,” said BabyChief.

“When I dig into all those crates, it’s just to learn. When you like something, it’s best to know why you like it. I just be trying to figure out what made this song so special,” he explains.

Beyond rap, he wants to give back to his city in any way he can. Through his music and his story, he wants to push positive thinking toward the youth. But first, he aims to put himself in a position where they’re open to listening in the first place.

“I want to push a certain way of thinking first, I got to start there. We got to mentally be on track before we move anywhere else. We got to help ourselves,” he said.

“My music might be medicinal to some people. My music might be therapy for some people. Some people might not like my music. But it’s for the world to do whatever to it. As long as I know what my intentions are, it doesn’t matter what nobody thinks. Nobody,” BabyChief said.

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