Background 

$uicideboy$ is a rap/hip-hop duo composed of Scott Arceneaux Jr. ($crim) and Aristos Petrou (Ruby da Cherry). Scrim and Ruby are cousins who started their music career in their hometown New Orleans, Louisiana. They grew up in a high-poverty area with toxic and abusive parents. By 2014, both of them were depressed, addicted to drugs, and tired of their jobs. With nothing to lose, they decided to start releasing music. Scrim and Ruby made a suicide pact, where they agreed if their music career didn't work out by the time they were 30, they would kill themselves, hence the name Suicideboys. Their first song was titled "Kill Yourself" and was released on SoundCloud. They rose to fame for their harsh beats where they rapped about suicidal ideation and drug abuse. Since then, they have created their label, which they still own and operate to this day, called Grey59 Records. The number 59 comes from the highway in their hometown that separated the white neighborhood from the African-Americans and grey represents the interplay between those two cultures. Between 2019 and 2020 both of them got sober, with Scrim doing it first and then holding an intervention for Ruby. Nowadays they are considered "Cali sober", which is only smoking marijuana. As they have gotten farther in their sober journeys, their music started to reflect it with more of their lyrics being about getting over their pride and asking for help when they needed it. 

Who Influenced Them 

Scrim was influenced by artists like T-Pain and Three 6 Mafia. Listening to them made him want to start producing music. He bought his first computer to start DJing and later started getting hired to DJ parties at the college he attended, Delgado Community College. There is not much information about who Ruby was influenced by since Ruby is very closed off about his personal life. Most of what we know about him is from lyrics in their songs. We do know he has enjoyed playing music since he was a child and was part of a band called Vapo-Rats before he and his cousin started $uicideboy$, so he has always been interested in making music. 

Cultural and Generational Impact 

$uicideboy$ has transformed the underground rap scene and turned it mainstream. They have done it while staying completely authentic and raw. Their music talks about the dark side of society that many people don't dare to talk about. Despite what people may think, the $uicideboy$ do not glorify suicide or drug abuse. Scrim and Ruby use their music as a way to release their emotions. Not only does their music help them heal and move past their trauma, but it also helps others as well. There are so many people, myself included, who relate to their music. There are millions of stories of people who listened to $uicideboy$ when they were at their worst and didn't go over the edge because their music made them feel less alone. They use their platform to speak out against huge cultural and social issues that made their childhood traumatic. Since getting sober, they both have talked about how getting sober has positively impacted their lives and urge others to get help if they are struggling. They are proof of how healing music can be for people. 

Collaboration with Other Artists

The song that many would say is what raised the $uicideboy$ to fame was "$outh $ide $uicide", a collaborated song with Florida rapper Pouya. Pouya was very big in the underground rap scene and helped Scrim and Ruby gain a following. Pouya was also a featured artist on $uicideboy$'s Grey Day tour this year. Grey59 Records, which is owned and operated by Scrim and Ruby, has five other artists signed to it: Night Lovell, Ramirez, Germ, Shakewell, and Chetta. All of these artists regularly collaborate with the $uicideboy$. In their album "DIRTIESTNASTIEST$UICIDE", Germ is featured on every song. They have also collaborated with Ghostemane, a very popular heavy metal/punk rock artist. Ghostemane was the main opener for $uicideboy$ on their Grey Day tour in 2023.