Jack Harlow

Jackman Thomas Harlow was born on March 13, 1998, in Louisville, Kentucky, to Maggie Payette, a businesswoman, and Brian Harlow. He was raised on a horse farm near Shelbyville alongside his younger brother, Clayborn, and is of French and Irish descent. After moving to Louisville during his childhood, he began rapping at age 12. He and his friend Copelan Garvey recorded their earliest songs on a laptop using a Guitar Hero microphone, selling copies of their CD, Rippin' and Rappin', to fellow students at Highland Middle School.

In seventh grade, Harlow acquired a professional microphone and released his first mixtape, Extra Credit, performing under the name Mr. Harlow. He also formed a musical collective called Moose Gang with friends. While attending Atherton High School, where he played on the varsity soccer team, he began headlining sold-out concerts at local venues such as Mercury Ballroom, Headliners, and the Haymarket Whiskey Bar. In November 2015, he released his first commercial project, the EP The Handsome Harlow, on sonaBLAST! Records, followed in 2016 by the mixtape 18, which launched his collective and label imprint, Private Garden.

After relocating to Atlanta, Harlow worked at a Chick-fil-A inside the Georgia State University cafeteria to support himself while recording at Means Street Studio. In August 2018, he signed with Don Cannon and DJ Drama's record label Generation Now, an imprint of Atlantic Records. That same month, he released his major-label debut mixtape, Loose, featuring guest appearances from CyHi the Prynce and K Camp. The project earned a nomination for Best Mixtape at the 2019 BET Hip Hop Awards. In 2019, he followed with the mixtape Confetti, which featured collaborations with Bryson Tiller and EST Gee.

Harlow gained widespread mainstream recognition in January 2020 with the release of "Whats Poppin", accompanied by a music video directed by Cole Bennett. A remix featuring DaBaby, Tory Lanez, and Lil Wayne pushed the song to number two on the Billboard Hot 100, earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rap Performance, and received a diamond certification from the RIAA. That same year, Harlow was selected for XXL magazine's 2020 Freshman Class and released his debut studio album, Thats What They All Say, which included the single "Tyler Herro" and was certified double platinum.

In July 2021, Harlow collaborated with Lil Nas X on the single "Industry Baby", which became his first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100. In May 2022, he released his second studio album, Come Home the Kids Miss You. The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, supported by the lead single "Nail Tech" and the chart-topping follow-up "First Class", which sampled Fergie and debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100.

Harlow released his third studio album, Jackman, in April 2023, which debuted at number eight on the Billboard 200. Later that year, he was featured on Jungkook's top-five single "3D" and released the solo track "Lovin on Me". The single reached number one on both the UK Singles Chart and the Billboard Hot 100, marking his third chart-topper in the United States.

Harlow made his acting debut in 2023, starring as Jeremy in the remake of the 1992 sports comedy White Men Can't Jump, directed by Calmatic. He also joined the cast of the Apple TV+ film The Instigators alongside Matt Damon and Casey Affleck, and served as both host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live in October 2022.

Harlow has engaged in numerous philanthropic efforts centered on his home state, where he has been commissioned as a Kentucky Colonel. In 2021, he donated to five Louisville community organizations and partnered with KFC and Yum! Brands to donate $250,000 to the American Red Cross for tornado relief in western Kentucky. In 2023, he established the Jack Harlow Foundation to reinvest in Louisville non-profits, and in 2024, he co-founded and co-headlined the inaugural Gazebo Festival in Louisville alongside SZA.