Thomas grew up in Houston's Northside neighborhood of Homestead. At age 17, he performed freestyle raps at local high school parties. He began his rap career with Swishahouse in the late 1990s. After realizing how much money he could make distributing his own mixtapes, he parted ways with Swishahouse on good terms and formed his own independent label, Boss Hogg Outlawz.^[2] Thomas bought two record stores and worked in real estate.^[1]

Slim Thug's debut album with Interscope Records, Already Platinum, was released in July 2005 after many delays.^[1] It premiered on #2 on the Billboard 200 albums chart and sold 130,000 copies in its first week.^[3] Singles included "Like a Boss", "3 Kings" (featuring T.I. and Bun B), and "I Ain't Heard of That" (featuring Pharrell and Bun B). Slim Thug appeared on Beyoncé Knowles's #1 single "Check on It" and Gwen Stefani's "Luxurious". With the Boss Hogg Outlawz, Slim Thug released three albums, Boyz N Blue (2004), Serve & Collect (2007) and Back by Blockular Demand: Serve & Collect II (2008). He left Interscope Records in 2008.^[4] Slim Thug's second solo album Boss of All Bosses was released in 2009. It included the single "I Run".

According to MTV News, Lupe Fiasco's video for "Hip Hop Saved My Life" was based on Slim Thug's life story. "It is based on Thug boss cause he is so G, and inspires me," Fiasco revealed.^[5]

In October 2009 he appeared on The Daily Show, in a parody discussing the effects of the recession upon wealthy rappers such as himself. ^[6] The skit was filmed in part at The Lion's Den Recordings in Houston, Texas.

Discography