Like any other genre, if a rapper wants to break big, they need to get a swell of underground support through mixtapes or his/her crew, then get noticed, then capitalize on the buzz and finally parlay that into big money. Last year around this time, people were talking about Black Hippy and Kendrick Lamar, and look what he accomplished in 2012: only one of the best albums of the year. In that sense, 2013 is off to a flying start with A$AP Rocky emerging into the mainstream with the release of his debut, Long. Live. A$AP.

As Zach Klassen discussed in our review of said album, which featured some of the biggest producers and rappers around, that this serves as the major jump that was necessary to propel Rocky to the next level of emcees. He’s right. For many, it’s easy to fall into the trap of being a great mixtape rapper, but when it comes time to release a full body of work, for whatever reason, they fall on their face. But not for the guy who is named after a rap icon in itself.

Born in 1988, the New Yorker has been involved in hip-hop since he was a teen after both his father went to jail for dealing drugs and his brother murder. Though he dabbled in rapping before, things didn’t get serious until he was 19, he formed A$AP Mob, which wasn’t strictly confined to rappers, but included producers and video directors as well. For those of you wondering what the “A$AP” moniker stands for, it has multiple meanings including He adopted its A$AP moniker, which has multiple meanings, including “Always Strive and Prosper”, “Assassinating Snitches and Police”, and Rocky’s favorite, “Acronym Symbolizing Any Purpose.”

He slowly began to build a core following in New York due to his style, which blended east coast and Southern hip-hop, which are noticeable in some of the references to things such as purple drank in his lyrics. Rocky became a favorite of the blogs and his songs “Peso” and “Purple Swag” earned him accolades, which eventually parlayed into a gigantic deal with RCA for $3 million for all of his projects, both solo and ASAP Worldwide.

While his mixtapes have gotten him initially attention, Rocky has also made crowd-pleasing appearances at several tastemaking events, including the Pitchfork Music Festival, the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards and on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon. His exciting live shows have won him accolades, with some labeling him as the future of hip-hop. This may seem bold, but for a guy as young and talented as the Harlem native is, his potential is limitless.

Whenever you work with and garner the attention of the likes of Kendrick Lamar, Florence Welch and Joey Bada$$, you something cooking. Although his debut wasn’t universally lauded, it definitely laid the foundation of what’s to come in the future for this rising star. Rocky may not be the most well behaved rapper (look up his laundry list of altercations), but do we really want that? It’s only January, but don’t be surprised if A$AP Rocky has a few more things happen before the end of the year.