Adolph Thornton, Jr., better known by his stage nameYoung Dolph, is an American rapper. In February 2016, Dolph released his debut studio album, King of Memphis, which peaked at number 49 on the Billboard 200 chart. He was featured on O.T. Genasis' hit single "Cut It", which peaked at number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Early life
Adolph Thornton, Jr. was born on August 11, 1985, in Chicago, Illinois. His family moved to Memphis, Tennessee, when he was 2 years old. He has two sisters and two brothers, and was cousins with deceased rapper Juice Wrld. On his hit track "Preach", he rapped that, "Mama always in the streets, so guess who raised me?". In his music he describes a time where his parents were smoking crack.
Career
2008-2017: Early success and shootings
In 2008, he nearly died in a drive-by shooting accident and later that same year, his grandmother died from lung cancer. These incidents motivated his "wake up" call. He started making music around that time as an emotional release. In addition, Young Dolph and his fellows all complained about fake rappers telling stories about what they had never done, witnessed or experienced. His partners encouraged him to do more music after hearing his first song, even though he did it simply for fun. His first mixtape, Paper Route Campaign, was a success and confirmed his journey into the entertainment industry. In 2016, young dolph perfomed his hit singles "Get paid" & "Cut It" live at the Royal South Central in Atlanta along with Solo Lucci and more to promote his debut album "King of Memphis". The performance was filmed by StayOnGrindTV's Director LookImHD. In early 2017, Young Dolph was the target of gunfire in Charlotte, North Carolina. According to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police, on February 25 several dozen rounds were fired. At least two vehicles and several weapons were involved, with rounds striking nearby residences and vehicles. By the next day, several hip-hop news agencies had begun reporting that Young Dolph was the primary target of the shooting, and that perhaps 100 rounds were fired during the attack. It was speculated that the shooting had stemmed from a rivalry between Dolph and rapper Yo Gotti, though both parties have remained silent. Young Dolph used the publicity to promote his second studio album Bulletproof.
Young Dolph was shot outside of a retail store in Hollywood, Los Angeles on September 26, 2017. He was listed in critical condition at the hospital, but within a few hours doctors said that he was expected to survive. He spent two weeks in the hospital to recover from his three gunshot wounds. Moments after the shooting, Yo Gotti was initially named as a person of interest in relation to the shooting. Yo Gotti was later cleared; his friend, Corey McClendon, was arrested for attempted murder but was released with no charges the next day.
Personal life
Young Dolph has two children with Mia Jaye, an American podcast host. They have one daughter named Aria Ella Thornton born in March 2017, and one son named Tre Tre Thornton who was born in June 2014. He is cousins with Key Glock.
