French Montana is a Moroccan - American rapper, born and raised in Morocco but relocated to the U.S when he was 13 years old. He is the founder of The Coke Boys Records and it's predecessor Cocaine City Records.


Montana released his second studio album, "Jungle Rules", which peaked at number three on the Billboard 200. The album was supported by the single "Unforgettable" (featuring Swae Lee), which was Montana's only song as lead artist to reach the top 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.


But before these, before forming his own label or dating Sophia Body Trina and Khloe Kardashian after divorcing his wife of seven years, before having bottles thrown at him while performing at Funk Master Flex's birthday party by a rival rap crew led by Jim Jones, before forming the rap group, before releasing 20 mixtapes, French Montana was like any other kid with the hopes of hitting it big.


Montana grew up in Morocco and was 13 when his family moved to the bronx. The fact that French's father left them without any means of support just two short years later made life there even more challenging for all of them. French started trafficking drugs, and just as his rap career was starting to take off, he was shot in the head. Yes, it's definitely not the American dream that his family had envisioned. But don't worry, it didn't prevent him from starting his rap career. Nevertheless, I do hold that bullet responsible for his choice to date a Kardashian.


On November 9, 1984, Karim Kharbouch was born in Rabat, Morocco, not far from Casablanca. Karim spent his youth playing soccer with his older brother Zach and listening to American rap music on the family's large estate. His parents made the decision to relocate to the United States in 1996 in an effort to give their children a better life. Kareem, who only knew Arabic and French, began studying English on the streets of New York after they arrived in the South Bronx. 

His linguistic impediment rapidly led to the unoriginal moniker "french," which stayed as he pursued his education at Roosevelt High and Lehman High. Karim's father found it difficult to adjust from expansive Moroccan hills to little flats, and after two years he yearned to return home. They had better chances in New York, so Karim's mother demanded they remain there and she was also expecting their third kid.

Karim's father ultimately abandoned him when he was only 14 years old and left for Morocco. Karim started hustling and eventually dropped out of school while his mother applied for welfare because they had no other way to support themselves.

Along with his close friend Camps, he began rapping under the name Young French. The two then came up with the concept to create a rap DVD where they would interview up-and-coming rappers, report on the latest beef, and utilize it as a platform for some of their own songs.

When they first published "Cocaine City" when they were 18 years old, it swiftly rose to the top of the street's best-selling dvds. The Coke Boys, a rap group, was shortly created by his mates French, Draw, Pop Cheese, and Brock.


French's strategy had been successful, and there was an increasing demand for his music, but he was still exposed to the risks associated with trafficking drugs. French was shot in the head one day in 2003 after being ambushed by two men as he was leaving the studio. These two attackers are the worst of all time because not only did one of them kill the other, but french also managed to survive the attack, making him a genuine badass.


Although the gunshot did not cause death, French's recovery required many weeks of medical care. He started working on his debut mixtape in 2005 and continued to make his Cocaine City series at the same time. He released "French revolution vol. 1" two years later and even managed to persuade Rick Ross to appear as a guest on one of the songs. His friendship with the harlem-based rapper Max B and the start of one of the most renowned feuds in the underground new york scene were both highlighted by the release of his subsequent tape, "Live from Africa."

The group French showed, getting their asses kicked in his Cocaine City vol. 4 series or DVDs or whatever, was Jim Jone's Bird Gang, of which Max was still a member at the time.

After that jab, Jim made a likely untrue but publicity-boosting suggestion that he was involved in the attempt on French's life. As soon as the mixtape was finished, Max B and french were swapping shots with Jones' crew.


Max would be convicted of robbery and murder conspiracy charges in 2009 and given a 75-year prison sentence. Their collaboration would have to end. French got Akon's notice while this was going on, and the two collaborated on a few tracks.

In the end, Akon did contract him, but he had to let Montana go because of some label stuff. It didn't seem to slow French down in any way because, he released his 10th mixtape a year later with huge names like 3-6 mafia, Akon, Fat Joe, Gucci Mane, and Waka Flocka Flame behind it.

They were all featured on it, and the song "choppa choppa down" was a huge smash in the southernmost reaches of the planet.

When it was released in 2010, the song instantly gained radio airplay and became a staple in southern clubs. From there, Rick Ross and P Diddy approached him and signed him to both Bad Boy Records and the Maybach music company.