Happy Birthday, Freddie Gibbs!

Today, June 14, is the birthday of Gary, Ind.'s own Freddie Gibbs, who now turns 36.

Born Fredrick Tipton , the rapper and former XXL Freshman grew up listening to Scarface, DMX, 2Pac, Jay-Z, Nas and more as a kid, which influenced the wordsmith's acrobatic lyrical delivery. Freddie is known for his 2009 project The Miseducation of Freddie Gibbs, showing off his lyrical chops after being dropped from Interscope Records. Gangsta Gibbs was chosen to grace the XXL Freshman cover in 2010 alongside the likes of J. Cole, Wiz Khalifa, Jay Rock, Big Sean and more.

To date, Gibbs has released three full length albums, the last of which was 2015's Shadow of a Doubt. Gibbs announced last May that he and producer Madlib are teaming up for a new album this year called Bandana. No word yet on when this collaborative LP will drop, but given that the two have worked well together on 2014's Pinata, the chemistry seems to be just right. That project featured appearances from Raekwon, Earl Sweatshirt, Danny Brown, Domo Genesis, Ab-Soul, Casey Veggies, Meechy Darko, Mac Miller and was a change of pace for Gibbs. In the meantime, Freddie shared his latest project You Only Live 2wice in late March 2017, a celebration of his freedom after being accused of sexual assault abroad last year. Gangsta Gibbs spoke to XXL about the ordeal in the Spring 2017 issue.

Happy Birthday, Freddie Gibbs!

See Exclusive Photos of Freddie Gibbs From His XXL Magazine Interview