Papoose is a master rapper and songwriter who has worked with some of hip-hop’s biggest names and been wooed by some of the world’s biggest record labels. He has, however, always retained his credibility through a stream of essential mixtapes. Along with this wife and fellow rapper, Remy Ma, he is one of the stars of VH1 reality show Remy & Papoose: Meet the Mackies, a spin-off of Love & Hip-Hop: New York, in which the pair also starred.

Papoose was born in New York City. He began his hip-hop career making mixtapes and got his first break when he offered one to the legendary DJ Kay Slay outside the offices of New York radio station Hot 97 where Slay had a show. Papoose was invited to perform live on Slay’s show, and before long he was also signed to his Streetsweepers record label, firing out mixtapes at a prodigious rate (at point releasing over a dozen within two years). He gained underground fame for his track ‘Alphabetical Slaughter’, which involved twenty-six verses each consisting solely of words beginning with the same letter.

In 2006, Papoose appeared on a remix of Busta Rhymes’ ‘Touch It’ alongside the likes of DMX and Mary J. Blige, bringing his talents to a mainstream audience. Later that year, he signed to Jive Records (home to major acts such as Usher and Tupac) for $1.5 million. The deal didn’t work out, and Papoose headed back to the underground scene. In 2013, he finally released his debut album, The Nacirema Dream to rave reviews. He has since released three more albums, the latest being 2020’s Endangered Species.