Diggy Simmons

At the time, teenager Diggy Simmons sort of had the odds against him. He was under the shadow of the legendary MC, Rev Run, his father. His brother’s plans for hip-hop stardom as documented on their reality show had failed, and Diggy was only 16. Despite this, by the next year Diggy had garnered a fan base and a record deal, as well as two popular radio songs. It seemed like he was everywhere-he would be on 106 & Park, then he would be in the ads during commercial break-then, he sold 22,124 copies of his debut album first week and we haven’t seen him since.

Big K.R.I.T.

Big K.R.I.T. was buzzing around the time of the cover, but he’s since found his spot in the underground, not always getting the credit or respect he deserves, but servicing his fans.

CyHi the Prynce

By 2011, CyHi the Prynce had picked up a bit of steam, delivering a scene stealing verse on Kanye West’s universally acclaimed magnum opus My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy as well as appearing on tracks with J. Cole, Pusha T, Cam’ron and others. Since then, that steam has drifted with the G.O.O.D. Music rapper never actually dropping a debut album, instead opting to put out mixtapes (his most recently executive produced by Kanye West).

Lil Twist

Lil Twist didn’t really have any traction in his career in 2011, and he still doesn’t now. The news he’s made over the last year or so has mostly been related to his friendship with pop star Justin Bieber, and not for his own music.

Yelawolf

Since signing with Eminem, Yelawolf, much like Big K.R.I.T., has continued to cater to his audience. While he hasn’t nearly hit the level of fame that his peers have, he seems content with the underground.

Fred the Godson

New York rapper Fred the Godson seemingly had a promising career ahead of him, but looking back, it just seems like the timing wasn’t right. After the cover, Harlem collective A$AP Mob hit the scene, with a Houston influenced sound and high fashion tastes in style. Fred couldn’t fit in.

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