City Girls

Biography

City Girls are an all-female hip-hop group made up of Yung Miami and JT. The members’ real names are Caresha Romeka Brownlee and Jatavia Shakara Johnson, respectively. The two started making music together in Miami, Florida, the city that inspired Caresha’s performing alias.

They first gained recognition after singing on Drake’s smash hit “In My Feelings,” and garnered even more popularity after the “Twerkulator” challenge went viral on TikTok when a dancer named Layla Muhammad choreographed a dance for their unreleased track.

Even though City Girls didn’t get credited for their collaboration with the Toronto Rapper, the appearance was enough to get them the attention of Quality Control Music, the Atlanta-based label headed by Kevin Lee and Pierre Thomas. They’re currently labelmates with Migos, Lil Yachty, Lil Baby, Kollision, and others.

City Girls released their first mixtape, Period, in 2018, and they followed it up with an album, Girl Code, the same year.

To learn more about Caresha Brownlee and Jatavia Johnson’s highly successful music careers, read on.

instruments played

Electronics

Piano

Vocals

Associated Acts

Doja Cat, Lil Baby, Megan Thee Stallion

Genres

Hip hop, Southern rap, trap

Labels

Quality Control, Motown, Capitol

Origin

Miami, Florida, U.S.

Website

305citygirls.com

Years Active

2017apresent

Wiki Link

City Girls’ Origins

Caresha and Jatavia grew up in some of the roughest parts of Miami, Florida – Opa-locka and Liberty City, respectively. Growing up in the Miami area inspired the duo to call themselves “City Girls.” They both speak about going to block parties and clubs at a young age, as well as listening to a lot of trap music.
Their track, “Fuck Dat N*****,” was recorded as a collective diss track for their stingy exes. After the song’s release, Yung Miami started getting it on rotation at clubs around the city. Thanks to Yung Miami’s hustle, the track became a sleeper hit. It features a sample from Khia’s song “My Neck, My Back (Lick It).”
The duo released a music video for “Fuck Dat N*****” in January 2018, which featured a cameo appearance from Trina, a fellow female rapper. The song ended up appearing on a compilation from the group’s label that year.
With just one song out, the group had to take a break from recording and performing due to JT’s incarceration. She was arrested for aggravated identity theft, getting a 2-year sentence. However, she was released early, staying in jail only from July 2018 to March 2020.
While her best friend and rapping partner was in jail, Yung Miami kept aggressively promoting “Fuck Dat N*****” via social media and in clubs. In interviews, she’s shared that she would give DJs 20 dollars to play the song during a set at a strip club. “It started taking off,” Yung Miami told The Fader.
After getting significant attention for their first single, the duo signed to Quality Control Records in 2018 and started work on their first album before JT went to jail.

Period: City Girls’ First Mixtape

In 2018, the duo put out their mixtape Period via their new label, Quality Control Music. The record features production by a host of beatmakers, including Lamb, Major 9, Bigg D, Castro, DJ On da Beat, LikOnTheBeat, and more. The debut mixtape received positive reviews and was accompanied by a music video for the song “Take Yo Man'' that aired exclusively on WorldStarHipHop. The duo also released music videos for “Millionaire Dick,” “Period (We Live),” and “Not Ya Main'' before JT was arrested for credit card fraud.

Girl Code: The Debut Studio Album

In November, not long after the release of their mixtape, City Girls put out their first major-label debut album, Girl Code. The album was released via Quality Control, Motown, and Capitol and featured the hit singles “Twerk” and “Act Up.” “Twerk” features female rapper Cardi B as a guest vocalist, and the high-profile feature helped to get City Girls into the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time. Girl Code was released while JT served her two-year prison sentence, and it wasn’t until her release in 2020 that the duo put out more music. While JT was serving her sentence, the album sold over 200,00 copies and garnered positive reviews from critics—it would seem that City Girls’ career was taking off. It was cited by The New Yorker as “one of the more convincing and commanding performances of the year.” The same New Yorker piece, written by music critic Carrie Battan, described the duo’s style as “ferocious, feel-good rap.”

City on Lock: The Sophomore Record

In June 2020, City Girls released their second studio album, City on Lock, via Quality Control, Motown, and Capitol Records. The album features production by a host of notable beatmakers, including Cubeatz, Southside, Tay Keith, Quay Global, and more. In addition, a number of high-profile rappers made guest appearances on its tracks, including Doja Cat, Lil Durk, Lil Baby, and Yo Gotti. City on Lock was the group’s first release after JT got out of federal prison. She had served a total of 15 months, shorter than her original 24-month sentence. This allowed the duo to get back on track with recording new material. The new record received positive reviews, including from notable music critic Robert Christgau. Christgau described the duo’s flow as “light” and “articulated,” writing, “What a relief to hear credible hoes rather than dubious cracklords brag about their cash on hand, to hear designer brands coveted as adornments rather than status symbols, to hear 'bitch' claimed by women rather than wielded by men.”