Ridgio

Derek Ahmal Towner Jr. (born February 1, 1995), known professionally as Ridgio, is an American rapper and record producer from Chicago, Illinois. Ridgio is the founder of Chicago-based independent label R.A.W. Entertainment. To date, he has released 11 studio albums, 3 mixtapes and 3 EPs as a solo artist.

Early life and education Ridgio was born Derek Ahmal Towner Jr. on February 1, 1995, at West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park, Illinois. He was co-parented by his mother and father in the North Lawndale and Austin neighborhoods of Chicago. His grandfather was a part of the North Lawndale Community Church choir and his uncle was a part of rap group Cermak Boyz; these are his earliest musical influences. At the age of eight, he attended the House of Jacob Bible study class with his mother and stepfather. He stated, "my faith in God is my strength. I feel like it's the pillar of my artistry." In an interview, Ridgio stated that his earliest memory of making music was when he used to freestyle once a year on his father's birthday starting from the age of 12. He recorded his first mixtape, C.L.O.U.D.S., at 18 and released singles "A Lot (Dope)" and "Ain't Ready" on SoundCloud. Despite gaining local recognition from those singles, he deleted them from all platforms. In 2015, Ridgio met his now wife, Patrisia Vekima, at an open mic at DePaul University, where they both performed. Within the same year, he also released his first two music videos, "Revolutionary" and "Anywhere", with Lyrical Lemonade's Cole Bennett. The songs were described as "a very fine mesh between a trap-like flow and a powerful meaning." Ridgio did not stray away from this style leading up to his debut EP release, Twenty I Winters. Since then, he has cultivated a series around the Winters projects that he releases annually on his birthday. He also released the mixtape A W A K E N on March 11, 2016. This was his first full-body project and included song production from Martin $ky and Kevin Frytz. A W A K E N helped Ridgio gain recognition in the Chicago Hip-Hop scene. Cole Bennett stated, "There's a solid chance you'll soon become a fan of Ridgio if you aren't already. This kid is quite unique. He is on a mission which is backed by solid reasoning that can be received through his music."

2017–2018

In 2017, Ridgio released his third and fourth projects, Twenty II Winters and World of Dreams. When describing the concept of World of Dreams, Ridgio stated, "Much of the project focuses on the theme of what it means to chase after your ambitions while also staying true to yourself." After releasing World of Dreams, Ridgio's music began to expand outside of the local hip hop scene. He was invited to the Boys & Girls Club in Michigan City, Indiana, and the LOK Wishing Tree Foundation to perform for his new audience. He also won a competition at The Promontory in Chicago to perform in Gary, Indiana, at Backstage on Broadway. Ridgio began producing instrumentals in 2017, which led to him receiving composition credits for web-series My Husband's Kid's in 2018.

Ridgio released Twenty III Winters in early 2018. In the same year, Ridgio launched an in-city tour coined The Chicago Mix Tour. The tour was co-hosted by his artist friend Amoz Wright & Dj' d by Pivot Gang's Squeak. Later that summer, Ridgio was invited to perform at the Metro Chicago Music Hall. Shortly after the performance, he was discovered by Chicago native Captain Sky, which prompted a short-term collaboration. Sky co-wrote Ridgio's Enough Is Enough record, which was released the following year on his early 2019 effort, Twenty IV Winters.

2019–2020

On February 1, 2019, Ridgio released Twenty IV Winters. Being his second self-produced album, Austin based blog Sail Club Co. stated the project "truly shows his different sounds that he can produce". One of the project's singles, titled "Enough is Enough", was played on Chicago radio station Power 92.3 FM. That summer, he went on his first out-of-state tour, A LGIT Tour, with his close friends, Mudd, Parnell, Y.T.M. and Sean Chupich (Psa Productions). He also released his long awaited C.L.O.U.D.S. album with all new records. He released music videos for 7 out of the 9 songs on the project. Ridgio gained significant recognition that summer when NPR Radio Station 91.1 FM included C.L.O.U.D.S.'s single "Inspiration" in its summer mid-day rotation.

On February 1, 2020, Ridgio released Twenty V Winters, which he introduced at a silent listening party in Chicago's Lincoln Park. NPR's Vocalo Radio placed Twenty V Winters''' "Have You Ever" in its Poised to Breakthrough list. In this album, he displayed how he felt about the connections with the people who are closest to him, throughout his life. The COVID-19 pandemic followed right after the release of his album. He expressed that the pandemic hindered him with making music videos and promoting the album. It is what he calls an Interactive Project, where he had fans pick the producers, songs, and features on the album. The film was a story about one young Black man’s reckoning with violence and trauma in the face of his burgeoning healing journey. While premiering his "Animated Experience" at the House of Jacob's Chicago Annex, he proposed to his long-time girlfriend Patrisia Vekima. He followed the album with a consistent release of singles every other week leading up to stand-out record Out of Body Experience. In July 2022, radio station WPWX 92.3 FM named Ridgio and his single "Out of Body Experience" the Power Pick of the Week. IHeartRadio Dj Jamal Smallz discovered the track shortly after and included it in the weekly rotation on 107.5 WGCI.

Additionally, after a 9-year delay, Ridgio released the original recordings of his freshman mixtape C.L.O.U.D.S on June 20, 2022 on all major platforms; he titled the project C.L.O.U.D.S. (2014). Also that summer, Ridgio released his first compilation album, And Friends'', which featured Mick Jenkins, Mark Battles, and frequent collaborator Parnell. In early 2023, Ridgio released his 11th studio album, Twenty VIII Winters. Ridgio was nominated for best individual hip hop act for the year 2022 by the Chicago Reader Magazine.

Discography

Studio albums +List of studio albums (soundtrack & compilation albums included) with selected detailsTitleAlbum detailsWorld of Dreams Released: August 17, 2017 Label: Self Released Format: Digital Download, CDTwenty III Winters Released: February 1, 2018 Label: Self Released Format: Digital Download, CDTwenty IV Winters Released: February 1, 2019 Label: Self Released Format: Digital DownloadC.L.O.U.D.S. Released: July 7, 2019 Label: Self Released Format: Digital DownloadTwenty V Winters Released: February 1, 2020 Label: Self Released Format: Digital Download, CDWe Made it Released: July 16, 2020 Label: Self Released Format: Digital DownloadTwenty VI Winters Released: February 1, 2020 Label: Self Released Format: Digital Download, CDEvil for Evil The Inspired Album Released: November 12, 2021 Label: Self Released Format: Digital DownloadTwenty VII Winters Released: February 1, 2022 Label: Self Released Format: Digital Download, CDAnd Friends Released: July 29, 2022 Label: Self Released Format: Digital DownloadTwenty VIII WintersReleased: February 1, 2023 Label: R.A.W. Entertainment Format: Digital DownloadTwenty IX Winters ● Released: February 29th, 2024 ● Label: R.A.W. Entertainment ● Format: Digital

Extended plays + List of extended plays with selected detailsTitleAlbum detailsTwenty I Winters Released: February 1, 2016 Label: Self Released Format: Digital DownloadTwenty II Winters Released: February 1, 2017 Label: Self Released Format: Digital Download, CDSix More Days of Winter Released: March 19, 2021 Label: Self Released Format: Digital Download

Mixtapes +TitleAlbum detailsA W A K E NReleased: March 11, 2016 Label: Self Released Format: Digital DownloadC.L.O.U.D.S. (2014)Released: June 20, 2022 Label: R.A.W. Entertainment Format: Digital DownloadJACKBALLMUSIC● Released: July 28th, 2023 ● Label: R.A.W. Entertainment

● Format: Digital

Tours

The Chicago Mix Tour (2018) A L'GIT Tour (2019) The Twenty VIII Summers Tour (2023) DND Tour [Opening for Mark Battles] (2024)