Juice Wrld

Did You Know?

• Higgins's parents divorced when he was three years old, and his father died in June 2019.
• He drank lean for the first time in the sixth grade and began using Percocet and Xanax in 2013.
• His girlfriend Ally Lotti stated in a 2021 interview that she was pregnant with Higgins's baby on three separate occasions, all resulting in miscarriage.

Career

Higgins began developing as an artist in his first year of high school. His first track, 'Forever,' was released on SoundCloud in 2015 under the name JuicetheKidd, and he recorded most early tracks on a cellphone. He changed his name to Juice Wrld, believing the change would benefit his career. In 2017, 'Too Much Cash' became his first track produced by frequent collaborator Nick Mira.

After joining the Internet Money collective, Higgins released his debut EP, 9 9 9, on June 15, 2017, with 'Lucid Dreams' breaking out and growing his following. He briefly performed under the name Juice in early 2017. Mid-2017 brought attention from artists including Waka Flocka Flame, Southside, G Herbo, and Lil Bibby, leading to a signing with Grade A Productions. In December 2017, he released the EP Nothings Different, and the track 'All Girls Are the Same' gained popularity through a Lyrical Lemonade blog post.

A music video for that song, directed by Cole Bennett, was released in February 2018, after which Interscope Records signed Higgins for $3 million. 'All Girls Are the Same' and 'Lucid Dreams' became his first entries on the Billboard Hot 100.

Posthumous releases

Higgins's first posthumous appearance was on Eminem's album Music to Be Murdered By on the track 'Godzilla,' released January 17, 2020, which peaked at number three on the Hot 100. On January 22, an announcement on his Instagram by family and Grade A Productions confirmed their intention to release music he was working on at his death. He was featured on 'PTSD,' the title track of G Herbo's album PTSD, released February 28, also featuring Lil Uzi Vert and Chance the Rapper.

A remix of YNW Melly's 'Suicidal' featuring Higgins was released March 13, and the song reappeared on the Hot 100, peaking at number 20. The single 'No Me Ame,' a multilingual collaboration with Rvssian and Anuel AA, was released April 17. Higgins's first posthumous single, 'Righteous,' was released April 24 with a music video. On May 4, his girlfriend Ally Lotti announced his upcoming third album would be titled The Outsiders.

The song 'Tell Me U Luv Me' featuring Trippie Redd was released May 29, and 'Go,' a collaboration with the Kid Laroi, was released June 12.

Artistry

Juice WRLD, born Jarad Higgins, pulled from a broad mix of genres for his sound, naming emo, hip-hop, rock, punk, and R&B as key influences. He pointed to Travis Scott, Chief Keef, Kanye West, and Billy Idol as his biggest inspirations. A Billboard writer described his 2018 work as a new branch growing from the sparse style of West's 808s. Higgins was part of the openly emotional emo rap scene that looked to West's album 808s & Heartbreak for direction.

He once joked that West was a time traveler for making music that felt years ahead. His other influences included Wu-Tang Clan, Quietdrive, Fall Out Boy, Black Sabbath, the Starting Line, the Cranberries, the City Drive, 2Pac, Eminem, XXXTentacion, Kid Cudi, Escape the Fate, Panic! at the Disco, and Killswitch Engage. Critics labeled his music emo and rock-leaning, genre-bending, and focused on heartbreak and raw feelings. He was called a hip-hop, emo rap, trap, and SoundCloud rap artist.

With short, hook-heavy tracks, he became a leading figure in late-2010s hip-hop. In 2018, Spotify named emo rap its fastest-growing genre, and Higgins rose to mainstream fame as a face of that scene, helped by a collaboration with Panic! at the Disco's Brendon Urie. Higgins saw the emo label as both good and bad, believing music sometimes needs darkness to match a world that isn't always happy. He said "Lucid Dreams" was the only song on Goodbye & Good Riddance he wrote down; the rest came from freestyling on the spot, often without writing anything.

Legacy

Ellie Goulding described Higgins as 'such a sweet soul' with 'so much further to go.' Chance the Rapper paid tribute on Instagram, saying millions of people around the world were hurting. Lil Nas X wrote on Twitter about how sad it was that this happened often to young talented rising artists. Ski Mask the Slump God said on Twitter, 'They keep taking my brothers from me,' also referring to XXXTentacion.

Lil Yachty, Lil Uzi Vert, Drake, and the Weeknd also gave condolences. Higgins's mother expressed hope his legacy would help others with addiction, stating it 'knows no boundaries.' She established the Live Free 999 Fund in his honor, targeting young and underserved populations with a focus on addiction, anxiety, and depression. At the time of his death, it was reported Higgins had taken pills to hide them from law enforcement, but his videographer Chris Long said Higgins 'did not swallow a bunch of pills because the police were at the airport' and could have flushed them.

On December 16, 2021, the documentary Juice Wrld: Into the Abyss was released on HBO Max, spotlighting his struggles with mental health and substance abuse through archival footage and interviews.