Yungeen Ace

Yungeen Ace
Ace in 2019
Background information
Birth name	Keyanta Tyrone Bullard
Born	(1998-02-12) February 12, 1998 (age 26) East Chicago, Indiana, U.S.
Origin	Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
Genres	Hip hop drill[1][2][3] trap[3] contemporary R&B[3]
Occupations	Rapper singer songwriter
Years active	2016–present
Labels	Cinematic Geffen ATK
Children	2
Website	lifeofatk.com

Keyanta Tyrone Bullard (born February 12, 1998), also known by his stage name Yungeen Ace, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter.^[4][5] He gained recognition in the hip-hop industry for his distinct, emotive lyrical content often reflecting his personal experiences with street life and gang violence.

Bullard is best known for his 2019 single "Opps" (with JayDaYoungan), which received gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), along with his 2018 song "Pain" and 2021 single, "Who I Smoke" (with Spinabenz and FastMoney Goon featuring Whoppa Wit Da Choppa). He signed a recording contract with Cinematic Music Group in 2018, which entered a joint venture with Geffen Records four years later.^[6][7] He entered the Billboard 200 twice with his third mixtape Step Harder (2019) and debut studio album, Life of Betrayal 2x (2021).^[8]

Keyanta Bullard was born in East Chicago, Indiana, on February 12, 1998.^[9] He grew up in a small home in Jacksonville, alongside his mother and 11 brothers, relocating from Indiana to Florida at a young age.^[5]

Bullard started his rapping career in 2017, releasing the song "Go To War" on January 18, 2017, as part of the local hip-hop group Yungeen Gang. On December 25, 2017, Bullard released his debut single, "No Witness". The song gained mainstream attention, with Bullard following up with multiple releases on WorldStarHipHop during the first half of 2018, such as "Find Myself", "All In" and "Fuck That". Bullard released his debut mixtape, Life of Betrayal, during the same year with record label Cinematic Music Group, gaining him further success in the rap industry.^[10] It had guest appearances with YoungBoy Never Broke Again and JayDaYoungan. It was later followed by Life I'm Livin in December.^[11]

Ace started off 2019 by releasing the singles "So Long" and "Message" which currently have 2.9 and 5.4 million streams, respectively, on SoundCloud as of May 16, 2023. On July 1, 2019, he collaborated with JayDaYoungan to release the mixtape Can't Speak On It, which features the single "Opps", which currently has 61 million streams on Spotify.^[12] In August 2019, he released his debut EP, Chloe.^[13] He released his third mixtape, Step Harder, in November of that year. The mixtape was supported by singles such as "Freestyle" and "Bando" and features guest appearances from Blac Youngsta, Lil Durk, Dej Loaf, Boosie Badazz, Stunna 4 Vegas, and NoCap.^[14] It charted at number 81 on the Billboard 200.^[15]

In 2020, Ace was featured on the song "Trust Issues" from King Von's mixtape, Levon James.^[16] Ace also released his fourth mixtape, Don Dada, in June.^[17] It was supported by the singles "400 Shots", "I'm the One", and "Heartbroken" and has a single guest appearance with King Von.

In March 2021, Yungeen Ace, along with Spinabenz, FastMoney Goon, and Whoppa Wit Da Choppa, released a single titled "Who I Smoke". The song is a diss track targeted at Jacksonville rapper Foolio that samples "A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton. It has gained popularity on social media as well as controversy for its acts of violence and murder. The song was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in July 2022.^[18] He released his debut studio album, Life of Betrayal 2x, later that year.^[19] It has guest appearances with King Von, G Herbo, and YFN Lucci, among others. Yungeen Ace has also collaborated with Nuski2Squad on the mixtape 2 Broken 2 Heal.

In 2022, he collaborated with fellow rapper Kodak Black on the song "B.A.M.", which was a single for his second studio album, All On Me.^[20] It had guest appearances from Kodak Black, Boosie Badazz, Baby 23, Toosii, Spinabenz, and YBeezy.^[21] In August, Ace released a single titled "Rekindle 23", which is a tribute to past rapper JayDaYoungan, who died in July.^[22] He released his third studio album, Survivor of the Trenches, which had guest appearances from SleazyWorld Go, EST Gee, Real Boston Richey, GMK, FastMoney Goon, and Rob49.^[23]

In October 2017, Bullard was sentenced to 31 months of probation for an accessory charge.^[24]

On June 5, 2018, Bullard was involved in a mass shooting on the Town Center Parkway in Jacksonville, Florida.^[25] He suffered from eight gunshot wounds and was hospitalized in critical condition. It was reported that Bullard had been celebrating his close friend's 18th birthday at the Wasabi Japanese Steakhouse, as evident from social media posts by Bullard himself. He was traveling in a silver Chevrolet Malibu with three other occupants, including his brother, Trevon Bullard, all of whom died in the shooting. After being discharged from the hospital for lack of medical insurance, Bullard was arrested for violating his probation.^[26]

On March 10, 2019, Bullard was involved in another shooting incident at the Hampton Inn in Waycross, Georgia.^[27] His attorney, David Haas, told Action News Jax that Bullard and several others were chased through a parking lot at 3:30 that morning. Jeremy Brookins, also known as Ralo, a friend of Bullard, was killed in the shooting, with one other person being hospitalized after suffering from several gunshot wounds.^[27]

Bullard has stated in various interviews that he suffers from PTSD after the 2018 shooting.^[28][29]

On February 5, 2023, Bullard announced on Instagram that he is expecting his first child with his girlfriend, Chloe Glass. She gave birth to a son in July of that year.^[30][31]

Yungeen Ace at AllMusic