Nardo Wick

Nardo Wick is a Florida rapper who drew immediate attention with his aggressive 2021 single "Who Want Smoke?" The song's fight-starting energy inspired both a remix featuring G Herbo, Lil Durk, and 21 Savage and an accompanying dance, both of which helped the song go viral. Before 2021 was over, Wick capitalized on the excitement around his song with the release of his debut full-length, Who Is Nardo Wick? He subsequently collaborated with Lil Baby and Gucci Mane.

Nardo Wick was born in Jacksonville in 2001. As a teenager, Wick saw the opulent lifestyle of rappers in his area and was inspired to pick up a mike himself. He released his first song, "Face Shot," online in May 2020, then released new tracks sporadically for the rest of the year. It was his January 2021 single, "Who Want Smoke?," that put him on the map, however, immediately catching on with fans and social media content creators, who brought the track's stream count up to over ten million plays in a matter of months. Wick amped up his output from there, releasing new singles "Aye Aye," "Knock Knock," "Pull Up," and more as 2021 went on. In October of that year, a remix for "Who Want Smoke" arrived with new contributions from G Herbo, Lil Durk, and 21 Savage and a video directed by esteemed visual creator Cole Bennett. This remix took the song from a viral sensation to a Top 20 hit. That December, Wick's full-length debut, Who Is Nardo Wick?, was released. The album included the remixed version of "Who Want Smoke" as well as songs with contributions from Lil Baby, Future, and others. Additional singles "Krazy Krazy" and "Riot" appeared in 2022, as did a deluxe edition of the rapper's first album. Wick was featured on Gucci Mane's 2023 single "Pissy," and "Hot Boy," a collaboration with Lil Baby, was released shortly afterward. ~ Fred Thomas