Real Road
Runner Richie

Rico Richie came to Atlanta music by way of the football field. A full Division I scholarship put him in a Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets uniform, and the city's music business found him there before the industry ever did.

He went to work in the mixtape lane: From the Ashes with the Street Republicans DJ crew in 2013, then Guilty by Association, hosted by DJ X-Rated and DJ Outta Space, in 2014. In 2015 DJ Drama presented “Poppin” on Quality Street Music 2, and the record took off. It has passed seven million streams on Spotify, and the remix brought in Chris Brown, French Montana and Meek Mill.

The run that followed stacked features with Young Thug (“We Dem”), Young Dolph (“Reload”), 2 Chainz (“Ape”) and Snootie Wild (“You Petty”), across three projects in the Realest Story Ever Told series. In 2016 Lil Wayne brought him out at Lil Weezyana Fest in New Orleans to perform “Poppin” for the home crowd.

Now he's back with a different energy. “Lambo Dreams” and “Loaded” opened the return in 2025; “Miracle” and “One Of Them Ones” followed; and in June 2026 “Hookah Smoke and Diamonds” paired him with Jim Jones. The MC Whammer EP arrived in October 2026.

Off the mic he hosts Real Ninja News, a news and commentary show on his YouTube channel that breaks down courtroom drama, AI, surveillance and the culture without a filter. If you ain't got no haters, you ain't poppin'.