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Conway the Machine

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Conway the Machine
Conway the Machine in November 2022
Conway the Machine in November 2022
Background information
Birth nameDemond Price[1]
Also known as
  • Conway
  • Nash
Born (1982-02-16) February 16, 1982 (age 42)
Buffalo, New York, U.S.
GenresEast Coast hip hop
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • songwriter
Years active2012–present
Labels
Member ofGriselda
Producer(s)

Demond Price (born February 16, 1982), known professionally as Conway the Machine, or simply Conway,[2] is an American rapper and co-founder of the hip hop label Griselda Records, alongside his paternal half-brother Westside Gunn. Acclaimed for his 1990s inspired, dark and gritty lyricism, he rose to prominence following his mixtape Reject 2 (2015) and debut studio album From King To A GOD (2020). His second album, God Don't Make Mistakes (2022), was released by Shady Records and met with universal acclaim.

Conway announced his departure from Shady and Griselda Records in February of 2022, and has since founded his own label, Drumwork. He has since continued his collaborations with Gunn, as well as their cousin Benny the Butcher.[3]

History

[edit]

2012–2019: Early mixtapes and G.O.A.T.

[edit]

Throughout his 20s, Conway was in and out of jail.[4] During this time, he reflected on what he wanted out of life and began weaning from a gangster lifestyle to focus on his career in music.[2]

In 2012, Conway was shot in the head, neck, and shoulder.[5] Originally, doctors believed that he would be paralyzed from the neck down, however, today the only permanent injury is his face being partially paralyzed, giving him his signature slur.[6]

In 2014, Westside Gunn founded Griselda Records, through which Conway and Westside Gunn would self-release their own projects and the works of artists such as Benny the Butcher and Mach-Hommy.[7] In 2015, Conway released his first two official mixtape projects through Griselda Records, The Devil's Reject and Reject 2.[8][9] Conway and Westside Gunn also released two collaborative EPs through London-based record label Daupe!,[10] the first of which was 2015's Hall & Nash, followed by 2016's Griselda Ghost. In April 2016, during Mobb Deep and Smif-N-Wessun's "Hell On Earth" tour, Conway was introduced to Prodigy of Mobb Deep, who would become one of his earliest notable collaborators and supporters.[2]

On March 3, 2017, Griselda Records signed a deal with Eminem's Shady Records.[11][12] On October 10, 2017, Conway contributed an a cappella rap verse to the 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards Shady cypher.[13] The same year, Complex included Westside Gunn and Conway in their list of "15 Best Unofficial Rap Duos in the Game",[14] as well as two of the "17 Artists to Watch in 2017".[15]

Following Griselda's deal with Shady Records, Conway's first official release was G.O.A.T. on December 21, 2017, which included production from Griselda's in-house producer Daringer and The Alchemist, and featured Royce Da 5'9", Raekwon, Prodigy, Styles P and Lloyd Banks.[16] Earlier in 2017, he released a collaborative mixtape with DJ Green Lantern titled More Steroids.[17]

2019–present: Studio albums

[edit]

On May 16, 2019, Conway, Benny The Butcher and Westside Gunn released their first single with DJ Premier titled "Headlines".[18]

Conway released "Bang", at the time expected to be the first single from his album God Don't Make Mistakes, alongside Eminem on July 19, 2019.[19][20] God Don't Make Mistakes had been intended to be Conway's debut studio album, and Westside Gunn had stated it was "90 percent complete" in 2018;[21] however, Conway's first studio album would instead be the project From King to a God, which he released on September 11, 2020.[22] During this period, Conway continued releasing mixtapes and collaborative albums as well.

God Don't Make Mistakes was ultimately released on February 25, 2022, as Conway's second studio album.[23] It was followed by his third studio album, Won't He Do It, released on May 5, 2023, being Conway's first studio album not released with Griselda.[24]

Discography

[edit]

Main article: Conway the Machine discography

Studio albums

References

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  1. ^ "Watch now: Rapper Conway the Machine gives back to Buffalo". The Buffalo News. May 14, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "Artist of the Month Conway on Repping Buffalo, Second Chances, and Being the Grimiest of All Time". Consequence of Sound. November 16, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  3. ^ Moorwood, Victoria (February 21, 2022). "Conway the Machine announces split from Griselda and Shady Records". Revolt. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
  4. ^ Eustice, Kyle (March 4, 2022). "How Conway The Machine Turned Tragedy Into Triumph". High Times. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  5. ^ "4 wounded in 3 separate shootings". The Buffalo News. March 18, 2012. Archived from the original on June 9, 2021.
  6. ^ "Conway: G.O.A.T." Pitchfork. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  7. ^ "A Guide to Griselda". Complex. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  8. ^ "Conway the Machine - The Devil's Reject". Album of The Year. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  9. ^ "Reject 2, by Conway". Daupe. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  10. ^ "Daupe!". Discogs. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  11. ^ "Shady X Griselda Ink Deal For Westside Gunn and Conway". Shady Records. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  12. ^ "Griselda Set Out to be Your Favorite Rapper's Favorite Rappers. It's Paying off". NPR.
  13. ^ Mojica, Nick (October 11, 2017). "Conway, Boogie and More Spit in Shady 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards Cypher – XXL". XXL Mag. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  14. ^ "The 15 Best Unofficial Rap Duos in the Game Right Now". Complex. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  15. ^ "17 Artists to Watch in 2017". Complex. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  16. ^ "Conway the Machine: G.O.A.T." Pitchfork. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  17. ^ Melis, Matt (October 30, 2017). "Album Review: Conway - More Steroids". Consequence. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
  18. ^ Chesman, Donna-Claire (May 17, 2019). "DJ Premier & Griselda Interview: Making "Headlines"". DJBooth. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  19. ^ "Conway The Machine – "Bang" (Feat. Eminem)". Stereogum. July 19, 2019. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  20. ^ "Listen to Eminem's Guest Verse on Conway the Machine's "Bang"". Spin. July 19, 2019. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  21. ^ Wallace, Riley (June 26, 2018). "Westside Gunn Takes One Last Independent Swing on 'Supreme Blientele' Before Heading to the Big Leagues". Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  22. ^ "Critic Reviews for From King to a God - Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  23. ^ "God Don't Make Mistakes by Conway the Machine". Metacritic. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  24. ^ "Conway the Machine Drops New Album Won't He Do It: Stream". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
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