Biography
Life and career
From Casablanca to the Bronx
Karim Kharbouch is born on November 9, 1984, in Casablanca, Morocco, and spends his first 13 years there, where soccer and rap are his twin favorite pastimes. In the mid-1990s he immigrates with his parents and younger brother to New York City, and the family settles in the South Bronx. He arrives speaking only Moroccan Darija Arabic and French, then learns English in the streets and at Bronx high schools including Roosevelt and Lehman.
After his father returns to Casablanca, his mother keeps the children in New York, and Karim becomes the family's main breadwinner as the household relies on welfare. He begins performing as Young French, and the double origin story — Morocco first, the Bronx second — remains the spine of his public identity. The cover of “Unforgettable” uses what he has described as his parents' wedding photograph, a private image made public as a pledge that his accomplishments will last.
Cocaine City and the mixtape underground
In 2002 Kharbouch and his friend Cams create Cocaine City, a street-DVD series modeled on the Smack DVD wave, pairing established rappers and personalities with unsigned talent while weaving in his own songs. The run lasts eight years and reaches 14 volumes plus spin-offs, and it seeds the Coke Boys roster from Bronx friends such as Brock, Droop Pop, and Cheeze. In 2008 he formalizes the business as Coke Boys Records, previously Cocaine City Records.
His debut mixtape, French Revolution Vol. 1, appears in 2007, and the 2009 tapes Mac Wit Da Cheese and The Laundry Man 2 build his partnership with producer Harry Fraud, whose “New York Minute” beat with Jadakiss becomes a citywide calling card. Two collaborative Coke Wave projects with Max B — the first in February 2009 — lock in a creative brotherhood that persists across the next decade and a half.
Breakthrough and the Bad Boy–MMG deal
The Coke Boys mixtape (2010) carries “Choppa Choppa Down,” his team-up with Waka Flocka Flame that takes over Southern clubs and radio, and a management deal with Debra Antney's Mizay Entertainment follows in November 2010. Rick Ross recruits him for MMG's Self Made Vol. 1, and the “Choppa Choppa Down” remix seals the alliance. Through 2011, “Shot Caller,” produced by Fraud, becomes a fixture of New York and national urban radio with Fat Joe's early support.
On December 6, 2011, he announces his Bad Boy Records signing on BET, and in January 2012 the arrangement is presented as a joint venture between Bad Boy and Rick Ross's Maybach Music Group within Interscope's orbit, with Sean Combs and Ross executive-producing his debut. XXL also taps him for its 2012 Freshman Class, and the pipeline to a major-label album is set.
Excuse My French and the feature era
“Pop That,” featuring Rick Ross, Drake, and Lil Wayne, drops in June 2012 and peaks at No. 36 on the Billboard Hot 100 while hitting No. 2 on both Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs; the RIAA later certifies it 2× Platinum. After several delays, Excuse My French is released on May 21, 2013, and opens at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. Singles such as “Freaks” with Nicki Minaj and “Ain't Worried About Nothin'” extend the campaign.
The album codifies his formula: crowded star features, luxury-rap confidence, and hooks engineered for radio and clubs. Through the mid-2010s he stays a frequent guest vocalist while issuing mixtapes including MC4 and Wave Gods (2016). With Fat Joe and Remy Ma he co-pens “All the Way Up” (2016), a summer staple that earns him two Grammy nominations the following year.
Unforgettable and the mainstream peak
Released in April 2017, “Unforgettable” pairs Montana with Swae Lee over bright, percussion-lifted production; Montana tells Billboard he personally invests in clearing the record and shooting the video. The clip, filmed in Uganda with the Triplets Ghetto Kids, sparks a dance challenge and carries the song to No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 — his first top 10 as a lead artist — while “Unforgettable” tops Billboard's Hot Rap Songs chart dated August 19, 2017.
Parent album Jungle Rules enters the Billboard 200 at No. 3 in July 2017 and is certified platinum. “Unforgettable” earns diamond certification from the RIAA in August 2022, and the association's database later lists the single at 11× Platinum. A remix adds Mariah Carey, and J Balvin cuts a Latin version, keeping the song circulating years after its chart run.
Montana, They Got Amnesia, and the indie turn
Montana, a double album issued in December 2019 through Epic, assembles guests including Cardi B, Post Malone, Travis Scott, and Drake and yields singles “No Stylist” and “Writing on the Wall.” They Got Amnesia follows on November 19, 2021, with “Handstand” featuring Doja Cat and Saweetie among its tracks, and it stands as his fourth studio album and final major-label release. Between LPs he keeps the mixtape pipeline open with projects such as Montega, made with Harry Fraud.
Coke Boys remains both crew and company: early signings and collaborations with Lil Durk, Chinx, Velous, and Fraud illustrate how he converts Bronx relationships into a durable label infrastructure. His catalog also keeps working after its chart window, with “Unforgettable” anchoring playlists and catalog listening across multiple territories.
Philanthropy and the Wave revival
Montana's 2017 trip to Uganda to film “Unforgettable” starts a partnership with Global Citizen that includes support for the Suubi Health Centre. After the September 2023 earthquake in Morocco, he announces on the MTV Video Music Awards red carpet a $100,000 personal donation and an emergency fund with Global Citizen and CARE to deliver water, food, shelter, and medical care to affected communities.
In his recording life, the Wave returns. After Max B comes home in late 2025, the duo issues Coke Wave 3.5: Narcos in January 2026 and announces Wave Gods 2: Cosmos Brothers for April 24, 2026, with features from Rick Ross and YE, plus the co-headlining Wave Gods: Narcos Tour announced for late May into early July 2026. The Source reports that “Ever Since U Left Me” from that run tops both Mediabase and Billboard Rhythmic Airplay charts.
Selected moments
Career highlights
-
Cocaine City street DVDs launch
Kharbouch and Cams create the Bronx interview series that runs eight years, spans 14 volumes and spin-offs, and seeds the Coke Boys roster.
-
“Choppa Choppa Down” breaks out
His collaboration with Waka Flocka Flame on the Coke Boys mixtape becomes a club and radio favorite across the American South, widening his base.
-
“Shot Caller” takes over New York radio
Harry Fraud's production and Fat Joe's early championing turn “Shot Caller” into a staple of New York and national urban contemporary radio.
-
Bad Boy–Maybach Music joint venture
After announcing a Bad Boy Records deal on BET in December 2011, he signs a joint venture with Rick Ross's Maybach Music Group and Interscope in January 2012.
-
Excuse My French opens in the top five
His debut studio album, released May 21, 2013, enters the Billboard 200 at No. 4, with “Pop That” reaching No. 36 on the Hot 100 as its lead single.
-
“Unforgettable” hits the Hot 100 top 10
The Swae Lee collaboration peaks at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 — his first top 10 as a lead artist — and later earns RIAA diamond certification.
-
First No. 1 on Hot Rap Songs
On the chart dated August 19, 2017, “Unforgettable” climbs to No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Rap Songs, his first leader on that ranking.
-
Jungle Rules debuts at No. 3
His second album enters the Billboard 200 at No. 3 in July 2017 and goes platinum, anchoring a summer dominated by “Unforgettable.”
-
“Unforgettable” certified diamond
The RIAA awards diamond certification to the 2017 single in August 2022, recognizing 10 million equivalent units in the United States.
-
$100,000 Morocco earthquake relief pledge
At the 2023 MTV VMAs he announces a $100,000 donation and an emergency fund with Global Citizen and CARE after the earthquake in Morocco.
-
Wave Gods 2 and tour with Max B
Coke Wave 3.5: Narcos leads into the announced April 24, 2026 album Wave Gods 2: Cosmos Brothers and the co-headlining Wave Gods: Narcos Tour.
Recognition
Awards and nominations
Recording Academy ballots credit French Montana, born Karim Kharbouch, with three career Grammy nominations. Two come at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards for “All the Way Up” with Fat Joe and Remy Ma — Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song — and one at the 58th for Best Rap Song on Kanye West's “All Day.”
At the 2026 BET Awards, French Montana and Max B receive a nomination in the Best Group category, reflecting their renewed Coke Wave partnership.
- Grammy nominations
- 3
- BET Awards nominations
- 1
| Year | Award | Category | Work |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Grammy Awards | Best Rap SongNominee | All Day |
| 2017 | Grammy Awards | Best Rap PerformanceNominee | All the Way Up |
| 2017 | Grammy Awards | Best Rap SongNominee | All the Way Up |
| 2026 | BET Awards | Best GroupNominee | French Montana and Max B |