Loski
Jyrelle Justin O'Connor, known professionally as Loski, is a British rapper and singer from Kennington, London. He is part of the Kennington-based UK drill group Harlem Spartans.
Loski began his career in 2012 under the name Lil' Nizzy. In 2016, under his current moniker, he released his breakout singles "Hazards" and "DJ Khaled", both of which became underground hits.
On 13 April 2018, he released his debut mixtape, Call Me Loose, and on 1 March 2019, he released his second mixtape, Mad Move. In 2020, Loski released his long-awaited debut studio album, Music, Trial & Trauma: A Drill Story. On 15 October 2021, he released a 10-song EP titled, Censored EP and on 30 June 2023, he released his fifth project titled, See You At The Gates, after being sentenced to 7 years in prison for possessing a loaded revolver. He was released on 1 October 2024.
Early life
Jyrelle Justin O'Connor was born in Kennington, London on 6 May 1999. His father was Ty Nizzy, a member of the PDC rap group and "an originator of road rap", according to The Guardian. His mother, Dionne Greenland, studied English literature and history while attending university, which Loski said inspired storytelling within his songs. O'Connor said in an interview with VICE that both of his parents supported him in pursuing a musical career.O'Connor moved from Kennington to Borehamwood to live with his grandmother at the age of 12 following a group of boys putting a gun to his head. He attended Hertswood Academy. In 2013, he was reported as missing from his house.
Career
During O'Connor's early musical career, he went under the name Lil' Nizzy, in reference to his father, Ty Nizzy. He released a song alongside Danks in 2012.Under the name Loski, he released his breakout single "Hazards" in 2016. Other early songs included "Money and Beef", "DJ Khaled", and "Teddy Bruckshot".
In March 2018, Loski was signed to Sony Music Entertainment. The following month, he released his debut mixtape Call Me Loose, which peaked at number 44 on the UK Albums Chart and was named as one of the inspirations for Scorpion by Drake. In an article with MTV, Loski stated that the mixtape was about "the neighbourhood, friends, everything growing up." The following year, he released the mixtape Mad Move, which peaked at number 41. An article in Versus noted that the mixtape "sees the south Londoner plant himself firmly at the fore of the genre."
In 2020, Loski released his debut album, Music, Trial & Trauma: A Drill Story, which peaked at number 39 on the UK Albums Chart and was noted as being "several albums at once." Robert Kazandjian, writing for Clash, stated that the album was divided into three acts, with the album as a whole mainly centered around legal issues.
In September 2021, Loski announced his debut EP, Censored. The EP was released on 15 October; an article in Trench noted that "although the extensive cast of producers keep the Censoreds sound close to Loski's drill roots, the rapper's evolution is laid bare as he attacks each track with an effortless display of lyrical greaze."
He jointly holds the record for most top 75 hits in the UK without having a top 40 hit with fellow British rapper Unknown T.
Criminal convictions
In 2015, when O'Connor was 15 years old, he was convicted of possession of a sawn-off shotgun. In 2016, O'Connor was sentenced to prison after being found in possession of a knife. He was released in 2017.On 9 April 2019, he was stopped by police while travelling to Willesden, who found him in possession of a revolver. O'Connor was charged with possession of a firearm, intent to endanger life, and possession of ammunition as a result. His first trial resulted in a retrial as a result of his prosecutor falling ill, while the second resulted in a hung jury. He was ultimately found guilty of possessing a prohibited firearm on 5 January 2023, and was sentenced to 7 years in prison. O'Connor was released on 30 September 2024.