# Sk8star
**Sk8star** is the stage name of J'Corey King (born 2004), an American rapper from [Macon, Georgia](https://www.edgepedia.org/macon-georgia), based in Atlanta and known for a versatile, melodic trap style shaped by [Young Thug](https://www.edgepedia.org/young-thug), [Future](https://www.edgepedia.org/future-rapper), and the wider YSL lineage. He is a core member of the Atlanta collective ØWay, and his 2026 breakthrough year produced the album *Designer Junkie*, the EP *The Beautiful Rebellion*, and appearances on Young Thug's compilation *Slime Language 3*.[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Sk8Star) • [2](https://hypebeast.com/2026/8/sk8star-oway-interview-tezzus-young-thug-diamond-pz)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Real name / born | J'Corey King, born 2004; born in Birmingham, England, raised in Macon, Georgia[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Sk8Star) • [3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sk8star-mn0004399246) |
| Collective | Core member of ØWay alongside Tezzus, Pz', Yung Fazo, and diamond*[2](https://hypebeast.com/2026/8/sk8star-oway-interview-tezzus-young-thug-diamond-pz) |
| Debut album | *Designer Junkie*, February 11, 2026, 20 songs, W4th/Island Records; reported 2.5 million first-week streams[4](https://music.apple.com/us/album/designer-junkie/1872790767) • [5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) |
| Second 2026 project | *The Beautiful Rebellion*, August 12, 2026, 8-track EP with production from Richie Souf, Pi'erre Bourne, and RokOnTheTrack[5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) |
| YSL ties | Featured on "ØWAYSL" with BSlime, Tezzus, and Rob49 on Young Thug's *Slime Language 3* (2026)[5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) |
| Early releases | First streaming song "Stand 4 Sum" (January 6, 2020); first project *Superstar Status* (March 2021)[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Sk8Star) |
| Reach | About 316,000 Spotify monthly listeners as of September 2026[6](https://www.scene-data.com/artist/6-sk8star) |
## Background
Sk8star was born in Birmingham, England, and raised in Macon, Georgia.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sk8star-mn0004399246) According to [The FADER](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-fader), his first song was a 2011 "freestyle" over "Peso" by A$AP Rocky, recorded when his older cousin Juwon wrote the verse and taught him to rap.[7](https://www.thefader.com/2026/02/09/sk8star-talks-young-thug-richie-souf-and-designer-junkie) He began taking music seriously around tenth grade, recording with the Mixcraft program and a $30 snowball microphone, and drew heavily on Rich Gang and Future in that period.[7](https://www.thefader.com/2026/02/09/sk8star-talks-young-thug-richie-souf-and-designer-junkie) In interviews he has said his intended path growing up was activism rather than music, and he has a tattoo of the word "rebel" on his neck, a word he treats as the shared ethos of ØWay, whose name uses a slashed Nordic "O" to signify opposition to oppression.[2](https://hypebeast.com/2026/8/sk8star-oway-interview-tezzus-young-thug-diamond-pz)
## Recording career
His first release on streaming platforms was "Stand 4 Sum" on January 6, 2020, followed by the project *Superstar Status* in March 2021.[1](https://www.last.fm/music/Sk8Star) A run of self-released projects followed: *New World Order* and *Mogul* in 2022, *rebel* and *Whole New Meaning* in 2023, *Rebel in the Room* in 2024, and *REBELUTION* and *PALE FEVER* in 2025.[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sk8star-mn0004399246) Pitchfork's review notes that after emerging in early 2020 he spent years on Atlanta's underground circuit with what it describes as a string of unremarkable mixtapes before his style consolidated.[8](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/sk8star-designer-junkie/)
**Designer Junkie.** His Island Records debut arrived on February 11, 2026: 20 songs in 47 minutes, released through W4th Records/[Island Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/island-records).[4](https://music.apple.com/us/album/designer-junkie/1872790767) He told The FADER it was recorded and revised over two years and went through five versions, and that he "stressed the whole label out five times" in the process.[7](https://www.thefader.com/2026/02/09/sk8star-talks-young-thug-richie-souf-and-designer-junkie) The album pairs his vocal experimentation with atmospheric production from the Atlanta producer Richie Souf, who became his core producer in the period before release.[7](https://www.thefader.com/2026/02/09/sk8star-talks-young-thug-richie-souf-and-designer-junkie) • [8](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/sk8star-designer-junkie/) A press release issued around his October 2026 single "Peter Pusher" reports that the album drew 2.5 million first-week streams and a 7.2 rating from Pitchfork.[5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) In March 2026, Pigeons & Planes described *Designer Junkie* as the best project to come out of the newer Atlanta scene it profiled, and noted that Young Thug compared Sk8star to the late [Lil Keed](https://www.edgepedia.org/lil-keed).[9](https://www.pigeonsandplanes.com/read/atlanta-rap-scene-tezzus-sk8star-zukenee-oway-interview)
**The Beautiful Rebellion and 2026 momentum.** On June 3, 2026, The FADER named Sk8star one of its 32 coolest artists of the year; days later the single "Double C" with [Pz'](https://www.edgepedia.org/pz) reportedly pulled 70,400 first-day streams, and he made his Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash debut.[5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) *The Beautiful Rebellion*, an eight-track EP, followed on August 12 with production from Richie Souf, Pi'erre Bourne, and RokOnTheTrack.[5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) The FADER highlighted his range within it, contrasting his melodic falsetto on "Callin'" with the croaking, rasping staccato flow of "Loose Tooth," and described his features from diamond* and Pz' as sounding like guests working to keep up with their host.[10](https://www.thefader.com/2026/08/24/the-opener-sk8star-atlanta-trap-beautiful-rebellion) Two weeks after the EP he appeared with BSlime, Tezzus, and Rob49 on "ØWAYSL" from Young Thug's *Slime Language 3*.[5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) In September he released a Skrpina-directed video for "Lo Mein" filmed in Tokyo, closed his run opening for LUCKI on the Bad* Influence Tour with a September 28 show at The Warfield in San Francisco, and released the single "Peter Pusher" on October 7, 2026.[5](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/) He has said his next album will be titled *After the Gala*.[11](https://forthespeakers.com/articles/meet-your-idols-02-sk8star)
## ØWay and the Atlanta scene
ØWay is a young Atlanta rap collective whose rapid rise was one of the notable stories of the 2026 scene; Sk8star names its core unit as himself alongside Tezzus, Pz', Yung Fazo, and diamond*, and calls himself the group's "glue," appearing on tracks for a quick verse or chorus.[2](https://hypebeast.com/2026/8/sk8star-oway-interview-tezzus-young-thug-diamond-pz) The group met Young Thug around the end of 2025, shortly before Sk8star made "ShawtyRokk" with Lil Gotit.[2](https://hypebeast.com/2026/8/sk8star-oway-interview-tezzus-young-thug-diamond-pz)
Pigeons & Planes framed Sk8star, Zukenee, and ØWay as leaders of a new Atlanta class moving away from the rage and drill sounds that dominated earlier in the decade and calling back to Bricksquad-era tapes, the Rich Kidz, and Young Thug's *Slime Season* series; Sk8star described his generation as "bringing back unity" after a period when rappers cut off friends to seem mysterious.[9](https://www.pigeonsandplanes.com/read/atlanta-rap-scene-tezzus-sk8star-zukenee-oway-interview) He names Young Thug as his favorite rapper, with Future, Lil Wayne, Lil Keed, Lil Gotit, and Rich Kidz among his influences.[2](https://hypebeast.com/2026/8/sk8star-oway-interview-tezzus-young-thug-diamond-pz)
## Reception
Critical descriptions converge on versatility. AllMusic describes him as an Atlanta-based rapper with a choppy, ad-lib-heavy flow reminiscent of [Playboi Carti](https://www.edgepedia.org/playboi-carti) or Young Thug whose themes include fashion and rebellion; Pitchfork says he shifts inflection line by line until his influences "crystallize into a new voice entirely."[3](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sk8star-mn0004399246) • [8](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/sk8star-designer-junkie/) The FADER has called him one of ØWay's most consistent artists from one project to the next.[10](https://www.thefader.com/2026/08/24/the-opener-sk8star-atlanta-trap-beautiful-rebellion) Audience measures have grown through 2026: his Spotify monthly listeners reached about 316,000 in September 2026, up 13.5 percent over the preceding 30 days.[6](https://www.scene-data.com/artist/6-sk8star)
## References
1. [Sk8Star on Last.fm](https://www.last.fm/music/Sk8Star)
2. [Sk8star: ØWAY's Reserved Rebel, Hypebeast (2026)](https://hypebeast.com/2026/8/sk8star-oway-interview-tezzus-young-thug-diamond-pz)
3. [Sk8star Biography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sk8star-mn0004399246)
4. [Designer Junkie, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/designer-junkie/1872790767)
5. [Sk8star Shares "Peter Pusher" Single, IMPRINT (2026)](https://imprintent.org/sk8star-shares-peter-pusher-single/)
6. [sk8star, Scene data](https://www.scene-data.com/artist/6-sk8star)
7. [Sk8star talks Young Thug, Richie Souf, and Designer Junkie, The FADER (2026)](https://www.thefader.com/2026/02/09/sk8star-talks-young-thug-richie-souf-and-designer-junkie)
8. [Sk8star: Designer Junkie Album Review, Pitchfork (2026)](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/sk8star-designer-junkie/)
9. [Atlanta Rap is Back on Track, Pigeons & Planes (2026)](https://www.pigeonsandplanes.com/read/atlanta-rap-scene-tezzus-sk8star-zukenee-oway-interview)
10. [The Opener: Sk8star sounds like the future of Atlanta trap music, The FADER (2026)](https://www.thefader.com/2026/08/24/the-opener-sk8star-atlanta-trap-beautiful-rebellion)
11. [Sk8star Interview: Meet Your Idols 02, For the Speakers (2026)](https://forthespeakers.com/articles/meet-your-idols-02-sk8star)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Music scenes › Transnational genre scenes › Hip hop scenes worldwide › Artists, groups, and people: Hip hop scenes worldwide › Southern US rap (Atlanta, Memphis, Houston, New Orleans, Florida) › Atlanta and Georgia rap*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license