Rashad Jamiyl Spain[1][2] (born October 8, 1993), known professionally as Saucy Santana, is an American rapper. He began his career as a makeup artist for the hip hop duo City Girls, and soon after embarked on a recording career in February 2019 with his debut single "Walk Em Like A Dog". Meanwhile, he became a recurring guest on the reality television franchise Love & Hip Hop: Miami. In 2021, Santana gained further prominence when his singles "Walk" and "Here We Go" spawned viral challenges on TikTok. That same year, he released the song "Material Girl," and later released the song's remix "Material Gworrllllllll!" (with Madonna).
Early life
Santana was born to Adrienne Spain[3] on October 8, 1993.[4] He grew up in Bridgeport, Connecticut, before moving to Florida when he was 10 years old.[5] Santana is of Afro-Dominican descent through his grandmother.[6] He started his career in the music industry by working as a makeup artist for City Girls,[7] and started rapping in February 2019 when he created a theme song for the podcast that he hosted with his friends at the time.[8]
Career
Santana uploaded his debut single "Walk 'Em Like a Dog" to the audio distribution platform SoundCloud in August 2019.[4] This release was followed by his debut EP, Dog Walkers, in September 2019, and then the mixtape Imma Celebrity in January 2020.[9] Santana featured as a recurring guest on the third season of the reality television franchise Love & Hip Hop: Miami,[10] which aired on VH1 from January 6, 2020, to April 6, 2020.[11] In July 2020, Santana released his second mixtape Pretty Little Gangsta,[5] bolstered by the singles "Up & Down" featuring American rapper Latto,[12] and "Back It Up" featuring American rapper LightSkinKeisha.[13] Santana featured on American rapper Sukihana's single "Food Stamp Hoe" in August 2021.[14] His 2020 single "Walk" went viral in 2021 after being used for the popular TikTok #WalkChallenge,[15][16][17] and earned him a cosign from American rapper Nicki Minaj.[18] His singles "Here We Go" and "Material Girl" also gained prominence on the platform throughout the year; the latter of which received a cosign from Madonna, who performed a medley of both her song "Material Girl" and Santana's "Material Girl" with him at NYC Pride in 2022.[19][20] They would later release the version they performed as a single, entitled "Material Gworrllllllll!"[21] His debut studio album Keep It Playa was released on December 16, 2021, and featured the single "Shisha", his first collaboration with City Girls, with whom he originally began his career as a makeup artist.[22]
In January 2024, Santana joined the cast of the reality television show, Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta during the second half of the eleventh season, in a supporting role. He was promoted to the main cast for the twelfth season.
On December 11, 2019, Santana and two others were shot in a drive-by shooting in Miami.[25] Santana, who was hospitalized for his injuries, stated that he believes the shooting was motivated by homophobia.[13][26] He said of the shooting, "I got shot in the top of my shoulder, you was [sic] aiming at my face or at my head, that's an instant kill." This incident inspired him to write the song "You Can't Kill Me".[26]
