Part of the A$AP Mob, Bronx-based rapper A$AP Twelvyy has been active in hip-hop circles since the late 2000s. Born Jamel Phillips in Harlem in 1989, the rapper, always nicknamed after the Harlem area code 212, altered that nickname a bit when choosing a stage name, since he didn’t feel like “A$AP 212” had a very good flow to it. One of his first appearances was a guest verse on the track “Trilla” on A$AP Rocky’s 2011 debut mixtape, Live.Love.A$AP. From there, Twelvyy was prominently featured on a host of A$AP-related tracks, as well as making appearances on tracks by Flatbush Zombies, Smoke DZA, Tray Pizzy, and many others. Along with these cameos, he also issued several of his own singles between 2014 and 2016, working toward his debut album, 12, slated for release in 2017. ~ Fred Thomas