Born Jonathan Lyndale Kirk, rapper DaBaby, is arguably one of the best rappers of the last decade. As such, he has quite a huge fan (and haters) base. So it is only natural for some to wonder how intelligent he is.
Lyrical ingenuity and flow are some of the attributes associated with DaBaby. But do these attributes and success actually mean the North Carolina-born rapper has a high IQ?
DaBaby’s IQ
DaBaby’s exact IQ score is not public knowledge. Most people do not know or keep their IQ scores private.
That said, the average IQ in the US, according to The Intelligence of the Nations report, is 97.43.
Additionally, musicians tend to have a higher IQ than many non-musicians, according to a new study.
So if we were to estimate, we would put DaBaby’s IQ somewhere in the 105 to 120 range.
However, IQ scores are not always a reliable indicator of an individual’s intelligence because they do not comprehensively capture all the factors that determine human intelligence.
DaBaby’s Achievements
Whether or not you agree DaBaby is smart, you cannot ignore his achievements.
In 2019, he released his debut album, Baby on Baby, which made it to #7 on Billboard 200. That same year the entertainment magazine XXL included him in its XXL Freshman list, a list of about 10 rappers who are on the rise.
He also won a BET Award in the Best New Hip Hop Artist category, and in 2020 he won another BET award in the Best Male Hip Hop Artist category.
DaBaby’s second and third albums, Kirk and Blame it on Baby, debuted at #1 on Billboard 200.
His single, Rockstar, featuring Roddy Rich, was #1 for seven non-consecutive weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Record of the Year category.
You do not accomplish such achievements on talent alone. Making smart business and marketing decisions is involved.
Dababy’s High School GPA
Back in 2022, a popular HipHop Twitter page, @raptvcom, posted a list of rappers and their high school GPAs.
The list conformed to the popular notion that J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar are some of the smartest rappers in the game, claiming they had high school GPAs of over 4.0.
The page claimed, without evidence, that DaBaby had a low GPA of 1.8. DaBaby clapped back at the post claiming it was a lie. However, he did not provide any evidence to dispute the claim.
Unlike most rappers, DaBaby did go to college. He went to University of North Carolina at Greensboro for two years before dropping out. In an interview, he claimed that he went to university to please his parents.
Although he did not finish, you do not get to make it to university if you do not have a high IQ.
DaBaby Claims He is Intelligent
DaBaby himself has previously claimed he is intelligent. Responding to memes claiming he was misbehaved as a kid, he said he was not a bad kid, adding he was “always intelligent, strong minded, and outgoing” as he is as an adult.
Why Would You Consider DaBaby Intelligent
Through his music career, DaBaby has resisted the temptation to clap back at criticism and negative comments.
He only responds to haters on rare occasions, which is pretty intelligent. After all, it is said that the less time you spend on negative people the more peaceful your life is.
Kirk has his own record label, Billion Dollar Baby Entertainment, a move that is generally considered a smart business decision. The label has so far signed 5 rappers, including Stunna 4 Vegas.
Announcing that he would be stepping back from rapping in five years, he said that: “I won’t be rapping in five years; I won’t be rapping. I’ll be creating other superstars.”
