42 Dugg

42 Dugg, born Dion Marquise Hayes in 1993, is a rapper from Detroit's East Side who became one of the defining voices of the city's street-rap resurgence in the late 2010s and early 2020s. Before music, he served a six-year prison sentence as a teenager and began developing his rapping while incarcerated, releasing his debut single «Livin» in 2017 after his release and quickly building momentum with self-released mixtapes like the «11241 Wayburn» series.

His raspy, conversational flow and vivid street storytelling, paired with a distinctive ad-lib style, caught the attention of Yo Gotti, who signed him to Collective Music Group, while a parallel deal with Lil Baby's 4PF imprint gave him a dual home in two of the era's most prominent Southern-adjacent rap ecosystems. Songs such as «The Streets», «Maybach», and «Dog Food» showcase his knack for blending menace with melody, and his collaborations with Lil Baby, including hits that helped define the sound of Detroit-Atlanta rap crossover, brought him to national prominence.

42 Dugg's music is marked by autobiographical honesty about incarceration, survival, and street life, delivered with a laid-back, almost mumbled cadence that contrasts with the intensity of his lyrics. He remains a key figure connecting Detroit's regional rap scene to the broader mainstream hip-hop landscape.