10 Things You Didn’t Know about Tee Grizzley

Tee Grizzley is an American rapper. Ever since his career started up in 2016, he has released a considerable amount of material. For proof, look no further than the fact that Grizzley released albums in 2018, 2019, and 2021. He’s taken the rap music world by storm.

1. Born in Detroit, MI

Grizzley was born in Detroit, MI. Said city is famous for both its rise and its fall. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Detroit boomed because of industrialization, so much so that it became the fourth most populous city in the United States in 1920. Unfortunately, it was devastated by deindustrialization starting in the late 20th century, with the result that it actually filed for bankruptcy in 2013. Still, Detroit remains notable for a number of more positive things as well, with an excellent example being its continuing influence in a wide range of music genres.

2. Raised By His Grandmother

Grizzley is Grizzley’s stage name. Meanwhile, his birth name is Terry Sanchez Wallace Jr. Family-wise, it is interesting to note that Grizzley was raised by his grandmother, which was necessary because both his father and his mother were constantly going in and out of prison.

3. Developed an Interest in Rap in Middle School

When Grizzley was still in middle school, he developed an interest in rap music. As a result, he and three of his friends formed a musical group called All Stars Ball Hard, which would upload their to YouTube for interested individuals to see and hear. In those times, Grizzley went by the stage name of ASBH Tee.

4. Went to College

It is interesting to note that Grizzley spent some time studying at Michigan State University, thus making him the first member of his family to go to college. There, he studied finance and accounting, which often go together because of their natural synergies. After all, finance is focused on the management of large amounts of money. Something that is either impossible or next-to-impossible unless interested individuals have fair and accurate information about what is going on, which is where accounting becomes relevant. Indeed, it is common for people studying either finance or a number of other business-related fields to take at least some accounting courses so that they can make better sense of the financial documents that they will have to handle throughout their professional careers.

5. Started Stealing Because of Financial Difficulties

Unfortunately, Grizzley ran into financial difficulties while he was partway through his college education. As a result, he and a friend started stealing from other students, which resulted in them taking approximately $20,000’s worth of money and electronics from the latter. Eventually, they were caught but released pending an investigation. However, Grizzley decided to go on the run. Something that eventually resulted in him and two others being arrested for the attempted armed robbery of a jewelry store in Lexington, KY on July 1 of 2014.

6. Went to Prison

The attempted robbery resulted in Grizzley being sentenced to nine months in prison. Later, while he was serving out that sentence, he was sentenced to 18 months to 15 years for his earlier robberies at Michigan State University. Due to this, Grizzley was in prison until October 16 of 2016. Having said that, it was in prison where he started taking rap more seriously, so much so that he wrote the entirety of his debut mixtape while he was still incarcerated.

7. Didn’t Have the Most Pleasant Childhood

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Grizzley didn’t have the most pleasant childhood. As he tells it, it was abusive. Furthermore, Grizzley was apparently exposed to both drug abuse and alcohol abuse on a regular basis because everyone around him was using both from a young age. On top of that, drug dealing was happening at his household, with the result that a regular succession of drug addicts would go in and out. Despite these influences, Grizzley states that he managed to remain sober, which was a factor in him being able to get good enough grades to go to college.

8. Avid Reader

As such, it is perhaps also unsurprising to learn that Grizzley is apparently an avid reader who has consumed a wide range of books on a wide range of topics. For example, he has mentioned reading science fiction. Simultaneously, he has also talked about reading everything from black novels to religious books. In Grizzley’s opinion, every single one of these books was something that he could learn from, meaning that every single one of them managed to help him in some way. Interestingly, he has agreed with a statement that he is a writer first when discussing his initial release right out of prison.

9. Says that He Doesn’t Feel Any Pressure

In the same interview, Grizzley has said that he doesn’t feel any pressure about what he is doing as a rapper. He credits this to him being true to himself rather than trying to emulate someone else’s style as a rapper in the rap industry. Furthermore, Grizzley has stated that if he was trying to emulate someone else, he would feel an increased sense of pressure because of that.

10. Has Commented on People Interacting with Him in a Different Manner Because of His Success

Grizzley has commented that people have started interacting with him in a different manner ever since he managed to become successful. Apparently, a number of people approached him for things that he either wasn’t able or wasn’t willing to give. After which, they proceeded to react very poorly to his refusals even though they weren’t entitled to the objects of their requests in the first place. Unfortunately, such stories aren’t uncommon. Plenty of other successful musicians as well as other widely-known celebrities have spoken out about similar treatment over time.