Saaheem Malik Valdery, better known as SahBabii, is an American rapper and hip hoprecording artist based in Atlanta, Georgia. His song, "Pull Up Wit Ah Stick" featuring Loso Loaded, gained widespread popularity after its release on his S.A.N.D.A.S. mixtape in 2016. SahBabii peaked at No. 8 on Billboards Next Big Sound chart in July 2017.
Early life
Saaheem Malik was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in the city's south side in the Wentworth Gardens projects. His aunt, TeeBaby, gave him the moniker "SahBabii" at a young age. In early 2010 at the age of 13 his family moved to Atlanta in pursuance of his older brother T3's career in music.
Career
Saaheem began recording music under the name SahBabii shortly after arriving in Atlanta. His older brother, T3, helped produce songs, and SahBabii released two early mixtapes: Pimpin Ain't Eazy and Glocks & Thots. After a nearly three-year hiatus, SahBabii released a follow-up mixtape, S.A.N.D.A.S., in 2016. S.A.N.D.A.S. was recorded on the musicsoftware program, Cubase, using a broken microphone in T3's bedroom. The mixtape featured the single, "Pull Up Wit Ah Stick" featuring Loso Loaded, which went viral on Instagram after SahBabii posted a 15-second clip of the song before its release. Soon after, the song made headlines and garnered millions of listens on SoundCloud. The music video for the song was released in February 2017 and earned 12 million views by May of that year. In March 2017, SahBabii signed a record deal with Warner Bros. Records. His family also founded the production company, Casting Bait Music Group, and SahBabii's father, Delval, became his manager. "Pull Up Wit Ah Stick" was later remixed by Young Thug, T-Pain, Fetty Wap and Wiz Khalifa. The song was later remixed by Lil Wayne which was released on the Mixtape. Drake also expressed interest in adding a verse of his own to the official remix of the song. SahBabii was flown to London by Young Thug where he met Drake. In May 2017, it was announced that SahBabii would be remastering and re-releasing S.A.N.D.A.S. with new tracks on the Warner Bros. label. It was also announced that producer Mona Scott-Young was interested in shooting a reality television show centered on SahBabii and his family. His breakthrough full-length project, Squidtastic was released in 2018. This was followed up by the EP3P, in 2019. In early 2019, SahBabii publicly stated that he would retire. However, he decided against this, "because of the fans". He stated: "I couldn't just turn my back on them. I'ma still retire, though. But I just wanted to make sure I give my fans the most music I can give them before I stop". On July 8, 2020, SahBabii released the albumBarnacles. Complex described the album as putting "the focus squarely on SahBabii's distinctive, dreamlike sound. With surreal production and off-kilter vocals, Barnacles is a unique look into what makes his music so appealing". His song Purple Umbrella samples a video game theme by Yasunori Mitsuda.
