$uicideboy$

Members

• Ruby da Cherry
• Scott Arceneaux Jr.

Deep Dive

Overview

$uicideboy$ is an American hip-hop duo from New Orleans, Louisiana, formed in 2014 by cousins Scott “Scrim” Arceneaux Jr. and Ruby da Cherry (Aristos Petrou). Operating at the intersection of cloud rap, trap music, emo rap, and punk rap, the pair built a global fanbase through self-produced beats, confrontational lyricism, and visual aesthetics centered on themes of substance abuse and suicidal ideation. Their ascent from SoundCloud bedroom project to prolific independent recording artists redefined how a hip-hop duo could sustain creative output and maintain artistic autonomy in the streaming era.

Formation Story

$uicideboy$ emerged from New Orleans in the early 2010s, a city with deep roots in hip-hop innovation and musical eclecticism. Cousins Scott Arceneaux Jr. (Scrim) and Aristos Petrou (Ruby da Cherry) began collaborating around 2013–2014, experimenting with production and recording in a DIY capacity. Rather than pursue traditional record-label infrastructure, the two cousins took full creative control over their sound and distribution, establishing themselves first and foremost as self-sufficient artists. Their foundation in New Orleans—a city steeped in psychedelic soul, funk, and historically unorthodox approaches to recording—informed their willingness to merge abrasive production with introspective, often dark lyricism.

Breakthrough Moment

$uicideboy$ rose to prominence on SoundCloud beginning in 2015, the same year they released a staggering number of projects: My Liver Will Handle What My Heart Can’t, 7th or St. Tammany, High Tide in the Snake’s Nest, Gray/Grey, Now the Moon’s Rising, and YUNGDEATHLILLIFE. The prolific output and unpolished, deliberately harsh production aesthetic resonated with listeners drawn to the platform’s underground rap ecosystem. Their music videos and thematic preoccupations—explicit, unflinching treatments of substance abuse and suicidal imagery—set them apart from mainstream hip-hop and aligned them with an emerging wave of younger artists channeling emotional turbulence through confrontational sonics. The volume and velocity of their output across 2015 established a template that would define their career: constant creation and release without waiting for traditional gatekeepers.

Peak Era

The years 2016–2018 marked $uicideboy$‘s consolidation as independent hip-hop’s most visible self-produced project. Eternal Grey (2016) and Dark Side of the Clouds (2016) refined their production and demonstrated growing sonic sophistication, while I Want to Die in New Orleans (2018) anchored their identity firmly to their geographical origin and thematic obsessions. The title itself—a direct invocation of the band’s hometown—signaled that despite their global SoundCloud reach, the duo’s creative center remained rooted in New Orleans’ particular cultural and sonic landscape. During this period, $uicideboy$ also formalized their role as label operators, launching and operating G*59 Records, through which they released their own music and provided a platform for affiliated artists, further embedding themselves as independent industry actors rather than simply recording artists.

Musical Style

$uicideboy$‘s sound fuses elements of cloud rap’s atmospheric distortion, trap music’s rhythmic hi-hat patterns and 808 drums, and the emotional rawness of emo rap. Both Scrim and Ruby da Cherry handle production and vocal duties, layering their voices with effects processing, pitch-shifting, and lo-fi aesthetics that prioritize mood over clarity. Their lyricism eschews conventional rap braggadocio in favor of introspection, depression, and existential anxiety delivered in deadpan or sung/half-sung vocal delivery. The production often deliberately obscures melody beneath layers of noise, distortion, and reverb—a choice that mirrors the murky psychedelia of New Orleans’ musical heritage while simultaneously alienating mainstream listeners. Over their decade-plus of releases, their sound has evolved from ultra-lo-fi bedroom recordings toward slightly more refined production, though they have maintained their core aesthetic of abrasive beats and unflinching lyrical content.

Major Albums

I Want to Die in New Orleans (2018)

A definitive statement of the duo’s identity, this album centers their geographic and thematic anchoring, featuring refined production that maintained their signature abrasiveness while expanding sonic range.

Stop Staring at the Shadows (2020)

Released after a two-year gap, this album demonstrated sustained commercial and critical momentum, consolidating their position as leaders of an underground hip-hop movement.

Long Term Effects of SUFFERING (2021)

Continuing their prolific pace, this project maintained their sonic consistency while exploring variations in mood and production density.

New World Depression (2024)

A recent installment reinforcing their continued creative activity and relevance nearly a decade into their career.

Signature Songs

• “Paris” — An emblematic fusion of their lo-fi production and introspective lyricism, establishing their sonic template early in their career.
• “Antarctica” — Showcases the duo’s ability to layer melody beneath distorted, abrasive production.
• “Kill Yourself” — A confrontational title paired with dark, experimental production that exemplifies their willingness to challenge listener comfort.
• “Long Gone” — Demonstrates their vocal interplay and ability to sustain atmospheric tension across extended instrumental passages.

Influence on Rock

While categorized as hip-hop, $uicideboy$ occupies an important position in the broader rock and alternative music landscape of the 2010s and beyond. Their self-produced, DIY ethos echoes punk rock’s anti-establishment lineage while their atmospheric production and thematic content align with the introspective, guitar-free alternative movements that have characterized post-2010 underground rock. Their success on SoundCloud and subsequent ability to build a global fanbase without traditional radio or major-label support has influenced how independent artists across genres approach platform strategy and direct-to-fan distribution. The duo’s embrace of emo rap—itself a genre-blending phenomenon—has validated the fusion of rock’s emotional vulnerability with hip-hop’s rhythmic and production possibilities, paving pathways for other artists working at the intersection of genres.

Legacy

$uicideboy$ remains active and prolific, with recent releases in 2024 and 2025 (New World Depression, Thy Kingdom Come, THY WILL BE DONE) confirming their continued creative engagement. Their ownership and operation of G*59 Records positions them not merely as recording artists but as independent label executives, a distinction that separates them from countless SoundCloud rappers who dissolved into obscurity. Their body of work—spanning from ultra-lo-fi 2015 projects to more refined recent recordings—documents a decade of consistent artistic evolution. The duo’s unflinching engagement with mental health, substance abuse, and existential themes has resonated particularly with younger listeners, establishing a cultural footprint that transcends traditional music industry metrics. Their achievement of sustained visibility and output in the independent streaming era, without compromising artistic vision or surrendering autonomy to major-label infrastructure, represents a significant template for how hip-hop artists can operate in the 2020s.

Fun Facts

• $uicideboy$ released six studio projects in 2015 alone, establishing an output velocity that would become their creative signature and distinguish them from peers operating on traditional album-cycle timelines.
• The duo distributes all music released under G*59 Records through The Orchard, a strategy that maintains independence while accessing professional distribution infrastructure.
• Their New Orleans origin connects them to a lineage of boundary-pushing southern producers and artists, from early psychedelic funk to contemporary experimental hip-hop.
• The duo’s commitment to unprocessed, deliberately imperfect production—even as studio technology improved—reflects an aesthetic choice rather than technical limitation, distinguishing their work from contemporaries pursuing cleaner sonics.