Though few, there are some cases that may explain why Shy Glizzy is still often relegated to being the King of D.C. when his skill-set and track record suggest much more. The follow-up to his mainstream arrival that was 2014’s “Awwsome” was a remix with A$AP Rocky and 2Chainz that left much to be desired. By the time Beyonce covered the original track at the 2015 Global Citizen Festival, it felt like a great moment to flex with more than something to be built off of, but Shy never quite got a solo opportunity like it again. The closest he got was “Funeral,” which came out in late 2014 on his Law 3 mixtape and is considered by many to be one of his best songs, but its Jeezy-featuring remix didn’t make much noise. The most damaging — and forgettable — move of Shy’s career was the brief pivot to his A.K.A., Jefe, in early 2017. The lone project under that name, The World Is Yours, was easily his most uninspired and a red flag that he might have been losing a step while fresh DMV faces like Q Da Fool, Rico Nasty, and WillThaRapper were trailing behind. But even that felt corrected by the end of 2017 when Shy’s powerful verse on GoldLink’s “Crew” helped earn the song a Grammy nomination.

At the very least, Shy Glizzy’s journey from Southeast D.C. will be one of the more interesting stories to dissect when people look back on the impact of regional rap scenes somewhere down the line. If he’d taken off further when “Awwsome” was hot, maybe his growth would have been reduced to just being a high-octane, squawking rapper with a penchant for anthems. Over the years, Shy Glizzy has found himself in some unsuspecting places for a street artist, maintained respect from his peers, gotten undeniably better, and, in the process, helped bring more attention to a region still jostling for the respect in the grand scheme of rap glory. Mainstream success aside, each feat is worth celebrating.

