Daniel Hernandez, popularly known as 6ix9ine or Tekashi69, is an American rapper and songwriter, who hails from New York City. He was born on the 8th of May 1996 in Bushwick, New York City, U.S.
The hip-hop star rose to fame after the release of the 2017 hit track “Gummo.” Other popular songs released by the rapper include “Kooda,” “Keke,” “Gotti,” and “Trollz,” all of which had top positions on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.
6ix9ine is famous for his controversial behavior and the aggressive rapping style he uses in his songs makes him stand out from our rappers in the American hip-hop space.
6ix9ine has achieved so much in his music. His controversial nature will get him into the list of America’s famous rappers. Also, he has worked with several popular artists, including the likes of Kanye West, Nicki Minaj, Offset, Tory Lanez, Young Thug, Fetty Wap, and Trippie Redd.
Tekashi69 is one of the highest-paid rappers in the United States. His net worth is estimated to be around the region of $11 million.
If you want to find out more about 6ix9ine’s life and career, then you need to be on this page. This post answers all the potential questions you have about Tekashi69, including his age, mother, father, children, family, music, songs, movies, endorsements, personal life, girlfriend, controversies and legal issues, biography, discography, income earnings, net worth, and more.
| Full Name | Daniel Hernandez |
| Stage Name/Popular Name | 6ix9ine or Tekashi69 |
| Place of Birth | Brooklyn, New York City, United States |
| Date of Birth | May 8, 1996 |
| Age | 27 Years (2023) |
| Gender | Male |
| Height | 170 cm (5′ 7″) |
| Weight | 64 kg (141 lbs) |
| Eye Color | Brown |
| Hair Color | Dark Brown (Rainbow Dye) |
| Education | Public School 59, Juan Morel Campos Secondary School, Legacy High School |
| Nationality | American |
| Zodiac Sign | Taurus |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Sexual Orientation | Straight |
| Girlfriend | Jade |
| Children | Saraiyah Hernandez, Briella Iris Hernandez |
| Occupation | Rapper, Songwriter |
| Record Labels | Universal Music Group (UMG), Caroline Distribution |
| Net Worth | $11 million |
Early Life and Biography
6ix9ine or Tekashi69 was born Daniel Hernandez on May 8, 1996, in Bushwick, Brooklyn, New York City to a Puerto Rican father and a Mexican mother.
His mother immigrated to the United States in 1988 to access better opportunities and live a better life. When she arrived, she took a lot of jobs, working as a factory worker and house cleaner to survive. Indeed, she was hardworking.
He was raised by his mother, alongside his older brother Oscar Osiris Hernandez. He didn’t meet his father until he was 9. Before then, he believed his father was dead and long gone. His father was a heroin addict who went to jail for his crimes.
When he surfaced, he claimed his wife’s family refused him access to his children. He was so aggrieved and agitated that he angrily tore the letters he sent from jail.
Growing up, Daniel was actively involved in sports games such as soccer. At 13, he had secured a place at a major league youth soccer team. However, he couldn’t break into the senior soccer team because his mother had an altercation with a person who was to get him into the team.
Daniel Hernandez began his education at an elementary school known as Public School 59. Later, he moved to Juan Morel Campos Secondary School. He also joined Legacy High School but couldn’t complete his high school education.
He was expelled from school in 8th grade for bad behavior. That happened when he lost his stepfather. It was reported he went through post-traumatic stress disorder after his father’s demise.
Hernandez’s stepfather was shot dead close to the family home around 2010 when he was 14 years old. His stepfather’s murder made him see a therapist to help him solve his PTSD and depression issues.
After getting expelled from school, he never went to school anymore. He began doing various jobs, including working at a grocery store and dealing hard drugs to help his mother and sustain the family.
Career
After ditching his studies at Legacy High School, 6ix9ine began working as a delivery boy at a local grocery store. He was struggling financially, so he had to do a lot of low-income jobs to meet up with his personal and family needs.
6ix9ine was blessed with the gift of singing from the beginning. He occasionally sang in his church after mass. He made up his mind to do music professionally after meeting Peter “Righteous P” Rodgers, the CEO of Hikari-Ultra, a New York-based record label. After the meeting with Peter Rodgers, Hernandez was encouraged to release his original songs professionally.
He started releasing hip-hop songs in 2014. At then, he dropped several songs, including “69,” “4769,” “Pimpin,” and “Who The Fuck Is You.” Over the years, he released multiple tracks and music videos with titles such as “Yokai,” “Scumlife,” and “Hellsing Station.”
He also opened a YouTube channel where he uploaded his works with the name “Tekashi 6ix9ine,” which became a popular name in the underground rap space. He also had a SoundCloud account, where he uploaded his tracks. On May 18, 2015, he released an EP titled “69 Mixes” under ScumGang.
6ix9ine’s rapping style and technique made him unique and distinct from other rappers. Particularly, his aggressive rap style and concept of animated music videos brought him huge attention and popularity among the media and audiences.
In April 2017, he was featured in a song titled “POLES1469” alongside Trippie Redd. Many of the songs released in the early stages of his career were distributed and released by FCK THEM, a Slovakian-based music company.
He rose to fame in July 2017 after making his Instagram post that went viral on Twitter and Reddit. His colored hair, tattoos, eccentric appearance, and demeanor turned him into an internet meme, boosting his popularity and fanbase. He became a trending topic on social media, and his notorious lifestyle kept him in the news.
He released the hit song “Gummo” the game-changing single in the same year, which marked the turning point of his music career. The song peaked high on the music charts; reaching the 6th position on the US Rap Chart, 12th on the US Billboard Hot 100, and 7th on the US R&B/Hip Hop chart. Moreover, the track “Gummo” received a Gold certification and was later certified platinum.
On January 14, 2018, he released the track “Keke” featuring Fetty Wap and A Boogie with da Hoodie. This song peaked at No.20 on the US Rap Chart. Also, it reached #22 and #43 on the US R&B/Hip Hop chart and the Billboard Hot 100 respectively.
Later, he released another song “Kooda” which increased his reputation. This song reached #29 on the US R&B/Hip Hop chart as well as #50 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was a big hit in his career as it got a Gold certification from the RIAA.
The media publicity and popularity of his singles gave him enough room to release a project. On February 23, 2018, 6ix9ine released his debut mixtape entitled “Day69”. The mixtape was a massive success and was well-received by the fans. It peaked at #4 on the Billboard 200 Album chart with 55,000 album-equivalent copies of which 20,000 of them were pure sales.
Two songs off the mixtape “Billy” and “Rondo” debuted on the Billboard Hot 100, with the former peaking at #50. In April 2018, he released the song “Gotti,” a remix of the song “Got it, Got it,” which he made with another artist Packman. This song was included in the Day 69 mixtape as a deluxe single; it debuted at No.99 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the next week, it disappeared from the charts.
In May 2018, 6ix9ine was involved in a messy controversy where he was found to be associated with the shooting of Casanova, a New York rapper. His career took a bad turn at that time as he lost a deal worth $5 million with a headphone brand. He was also banned from releasing new music and banned from Barclays Center.
In June 2018, 6ix9ine returned with a smash hit “Fefe” featuring Nicki Minaj and Murda Beatz, which debuted at #43 on the Billboard Hot 100. The next month, the song reached the 3rd spot on the US Billboard Hot 100. This was the first time in his career he had a song among the top five places on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Fefe is one of 6ix9ine’s most successful songs to date. It made over 8.4 million sales and is 8X platinum. The song’s success made him the interest of many international record labels. In September 2018, he signed a publishing deal with Create Music Group. In November 2018, he released his debut studio album titled “Dummy Boy,” which debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 with 66,000 units and had over 10,000 pure album sales.
The same year, he was featured in Uncle Murda’s “Get the Strap” alongside Casanova and 50 Cent. Towards the end of 2018, 6ix9ine was arrested for several charges, including drug charges, firearm possession, racketeering, and conspiracy to commit murder. He was arrested as part of an ongoing investigation against a street gang called Nine Trey Gangsters.
In early 2019, he took a plea deal, which saw him snitch on his gang members. After testifying against his former gang associates, his sentence was reduced from 37 years imprisonment to 2 years. However, he didn’t complete the sentence as was released early due to the COVID-19 pandemic and spent the remaining months of his sentence in home confinement.
In October 2019, he signed a two-album deal with a record company 19K Projects. Eventually, he released two albums for the company, one was made in English and the other in Spanish.
On September 4, 2020, 6ix9ine released his second music album titled “Tattles Tales,” which sold over 55,000 units. One of the album’s songs “Trollz” featuring rapper Nicki Minaj reached the No.1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100. This song took 6ix9ine straight to the top of the music chart; it reached #1 on the US R&B/Hip Hop chart, #4 on the Canadian Hot 100, #8 on the O3 Austria Top 40, #8 on the Swiss Hitparade, and #12 on the UK Singles Chart. Furthermore, it is certified platinum by the RIAA.
On February 19, 2020, he released the song “Zaza,” which debuted at #90 on the Hot 100 and #37 on the US R&B/Hip Hop chart.
Some of the hit songs he made or appeared in are:
- Billy.
- Tutu.
- Yaya.
- Zaza.
- Gine.
- Gummo.
- Kooda.
- Punani.
- “Keke” featuring Fetty Wap and A Boogie wit da Hoodie.
- Gotti.
- “Tati” featuring DJ Spinking.
- “Stoopid” featuring Bobby Shmurda.
- “Rondo” featuring Tory Lanez and Young Thug.
- “Tic Toc” featuring Lil Baby.
- “Yokai” with ZillaKami.
- “Fefe” featuring Nicki Minaj and Murda Beatz.
- “Kika” featuring Tory Lanez.
- “Mama” featuring Nicki Minaj and Kanye West.
- “Kanga” featuring Kanye West.
- “Waka” featuring A Boogie wit da Hoodie.
- “Mala” featuring Anuel AA.
- “Bebe” featuring Anuel AA.
- “Feefa” featuring Gunna.
- “Trollz” (with Nicki Minaj).
- “International Gangstas” (with Farid Bang and Capo featuring SCH).
- “Aulos Reloaded” (with Vladimir Cauchemar).
- “Shaka Laka” (with Yailin La Más Viral featuring Kodak Black).
Business and Record Deals
6ix9ine has used his social media handles to brag about several record, management, publishing, and endorsement deals. Firstly, in January 2018, he claimed to have signed a $7.5 million record deal on an Instagram post, which had been deleted.
The next month, he claimed he had signed a lucrative management deal worth $15 million with Birdman’s RICHGANG company. However, there is no evidence to back that he signed any of these deals.
In October 2019, 6ix9ine signed a deal with a record company 10K Projects. This deal has been confirmed to be true and real and is reportedly worth $10 million. The record deal will see him release two music albums with the company, one in English Language and the other in Spanish.
In July 2020, 6ix9ine announced that he had signed a $5 million deal with GlobalStreamNow, a live-streaming company.
Personal Life
6ix9ine has two daughters Saraiya Hernandez and Briella Iris Hernandez from different mothers. He has dated several women; at the age of 18, he was in a relationship with Sara Molina and they had a child Saraiya Hernandez. Later, he dated Marlayna M, who bore him another daughter named Briella Iris Hernandez.
Currently, 6ix9ine is believed to be in a relationship with Rachel Wattley (popularly known as Jade), an ex-bartender and popular social media personality.
6ix9ine has been arrested on multiple occasions. In 2015, he pleaded to a felony count of using a minor in a sexual performance and was eventually arrested. He was given a 3-year probation and didn’t register as a sex offender since he had his GED and wasn’t posting sexually explicit content on the internet.
In 2018, he was arrested for choking an individual at a Houston mall. The same year, he found his way into the police net as he was arrested on drug charges, illegal possession of firearms, and conspiracy to commit murder.
The case was serious and would have made him spend up to 47 years in prison but the sentence was shortened to 2 years after brokering a deal with the government prosecutors.
The judgment passed would see him spend two years in prison with five years of probation, a fine of $35,000, and 300 community service hours. On March 22, 2020, he requested to be released early due to the COVID-19 virus ravaging the prison. His request was granted on April 2, 2022, so he spent 13 months in prison but served the remaining four months of his sentence in house arrest.
6ix9ine has received several death threats from his former gang Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods and may live in fear throughout his lifetime after snitching on two members of the gang. This may be the reason why he is ever conscious of his security.
In one of his Los Angeles trips, the rapper revealed hiring an entourage of security personnel and bodyguards who provided all-around protection for a reported fee of over $100,000 for ten days.
6ix9ine resides in New York City and owns several properties in America. He owns some of the finest cars, including brands an Audi RS7 and an Aston Martin Vantage, which cost $120,000 and $160,000 respectively.
He owns a Rolls-Royce Ghost worth $300,000 and a Mercedes McLaren P1, which cost $2 million. In addition, he has a luxurious jewelry collection, which costs hundreds of thousands of dollars.
His jewelry collection features a “My Little Pony” chain which costs over $750,000. He owns a Rolex watch worth $100,000, coupled with lots of diamond necklaces, chains, 69 rings, and a rainbow spanner worth over $350,000.
6ix9ine Net Worth
6ix9ine is a successful American rapper known for smash hit singles like Gummo, Gooba, Keke, Kooda, and Trollz. 6ix9ine’s net worth is estimated to be around $11 million.
6ix9ine makes his money from album sales, royalties from streaming platforms, endorsement deals, tours, merch, and performances. Remarkably, the “Gooba” music video smashed the YouTube records. The video garnered over 41 million views within 24 hours of release, eclipsing the record set by rapper Eminem in 2018 for his “Killshot” video.
Within a week of release, “Gooba” had gotten over 150 million views. Within the period, he went live on Instagram and had more than 2 million people tuned in live, breaking the previous Instagram live record of 1.7 million.
6ix9ine revealed that he earned an average of $60,000 monthly from live performances and streams after the release of the hit track “Gummo.” Similarly, he claimed to have made $2 million from Gooba alone within the first week of release.
6ix9ine has millions of followers across the social media networks he is registered to. His YouTube channel has amassed billions of views from the music videos and visual content uploaded.