Riff Raff

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About

Riff Raff, also known as Jody Highroller (real name Horst Christian Simco), is an American rapper from Houston signed to Diplo's label Mad Decent, known for his eccentric appearance and comedic style and approach to rap.

Background

Riff Raff started his music career in his teens, by a handing mixtape CDs to local club DJs, and by using social media, including Facebook, Myspace, and YouTube. His promotion worked, and he quickly became a sensation in his hometown of Houston, Texas.^[1] In 2011, the rapper moved to Los Angeles and signed first to Soulja Boy's label, S.O.D. Money Gang Inc, and then to Diplo's larger label Mad Decent. Throughout this time, Riff Raff developed his signature style of wearing African-American style braids, gold grills, and colorful clothing.

Online History

Three Loco

Riff Raff's first viral hit came as part of the hip hop comedy trio Three Loco,^[2] with rapper Dirt Nasty and comedian Andy Milonakis. Their debut single "Neato" was first uploaded to YouTube on May 12th, 2012, where gained over 5 million views as of September 2015.

[This video has been removed]

Neon Icon

After a series of independent albums and mixtapes, Riff Raff signed to producer Diplo's label Mad Decent. He attained mainstream success with the September 17th, 2013 release of his single Dolce & Gabanna (shown below), a track originally recorded for his first major label album Neon Icon. The song, which received 12 million views and 49,000 likes as of September 2015, would later be scrapped off the album. Much of the song's popularity was derived from Riff Raff's mispronunciation of the fashion brand "Dolce & Gabbana."^[3]

Tip Toe Wing In My Jawwdinz

"Tip Toe Wing In My Jawwdinz" is the second single off Riff Raff's debut album Neon Icon, released on June 10, 2014. The song became popular on social media sites like Vine where the hook is interpolated with videos of people dancing or walking in tip toes, often in expensive sneakers, as a parody of Sneakerheads.

On July 2, 2014 Vine user Jerry Purpdrank uploaded a Vine titled "Getting new Jordan's be like…" which featured him walking on paper towels to keep his new Jordan shoes clean, with a soundtrack of the chorus of "Tip Toe Wing In My Jawwdinz". The vine garnered 310,000 revines and 588,200 likes (shown below left) and on July 28, 2014 a compilation of tip toeing videos set to the song was uploaded by YouTube user Top ShelFF Promo, where it received 40,921 views as of September 2015. (shown below right)

Rap Game X

Rap Game X is a popular phrase used multiple times by RIff Raff trough his songs, often to compare himself to a rap version of an important person, either an artist or just a political figure. The phrase was first seen on the song "Rap Game James Franco"(shown below) and has then been used since then by the rapper.^[4]

Reputation

Rape Allegation

On May 31st, 2018, Facebook user Eliza Stafford wrote a post accusing Riff Raff of drugging and raping her backstage after a concert in 2013.^[10] She alleged that Riff Raff and his crew had drugged her with a shot of codeine, which caused her to black out, and when she came to, the rapper was finishing having sex with her. She also wrote that her friends told her she had struggled to get away but was forced into a car with the rapper.

The allegation caused Audiopaxx,^[11] the promoter of the rapper's tour in Australia and New Zealand, to cancel it effective immediately. The hotel mentioned by Stafford in her post where Riff Raff was scheduled to have an upcoming show, also cancelled the show.^[12] As of June 1st, 2018, the rapper has not responded to the allegation.

Online Presence

Riff Raff has 1.1 million followers on Vine, and 1.13 million on Twitter, both of which are known for their comedic content.^[5]^[6] His Facebook page has 469,000 followers, and his Instagram has 1 million followers.^[7]^[9] His website, JodyHighroller, has a high quantity of humorous merchandise, including custom Playstation skins and the opportunity to have Riff Raff design your tattoo.^[8]