Lil Durk’s Surprising Net Worth And Biography (Updated 2022)
Who Is Lil Durk?
Durk Derrick Banks, professionally known as Lil Durk, is an American rap artist, singer, and songwriter.
Lil Durk is the founder as well as the lead member of the Chicago-based rap collective Only the Family (OTF).
Quick Facts
| Full Name: | Durk Derrick Banks |
| Popular Name: | Lil Durk |
| Gender: | Male |
| Birth Date: | October 19, 1992 |
| Age: | 29 years |
| Parents: | Dontay Banks, mother unknown |
| Siblings: | Dontay Banks Jr., also known as ‘D Thang’ |
| Birth Place: | Chicago, Illinois |
| Nationality: | American |
| Ethnicity: | African-American |
| Education: | Paul Robeson High School |
| Marital Status: | Unmarried |
| Sexual Orientation: | Straight |
| Wife/Spouse: | N/A |
| Children: | Angelo Banks and Bella Banks (from a relationship with Nicole Covone), Zayden Banks (by an unknown woman), Du’mier Banks (mother unknown), Skyler Banks (mother unknown), and Willow Banks (from his current relationship with India Royale) |
| Dating: | India Royale |
| Net Worth: | USD 3 million (as of July 1, 2021) |
| Source of Wealth: | Rapping, Singing, Songwriting, and Other Ventures |
| Height: | 5′ 9″ (1.8 m) |
| Weight: | 72 kg; In pounds: 158 lbs. |
Early Life and Career Information
Who Is Lil Durk?
Durk Derrick Banks, professionally known as Lil Durk, is an American rap artist, singer, and songwriter.
Lil Durk is the founder as well as the lead member of the Chicago-based rap collective Only the Family (OTF).
Quick Facts
| Full Name: | Durk Derrick Banks |
| Popular Name: | Lil Durk |
| Gender: | Male |
| Birth Date: | October 19, 1992 |
| Age: | 29 years |
| Parents: | Dontay Banks, mother unknown |
| Siblings: | Dontay Banks Jr., also known as ‘D Thang’ |
| Birth Place: | Chicago, Illinois |
| Nationality: | American |
| Ethnicity: | African-American |
| Education: | Paul Robeson High School |
| Marital Status: | Unmarried |
| Sexual Orientation: | Straight |
| Wife/Spouse: | N/A |
| Children: | Angelo Banks and Bella Banks (from a relationship with Nicole Covone), Zayden Banks (by an unknown woman), Du’mier Banks (mother unknown), Skyler Banks (mother unknown), and Willow Banks (from his current relationship with India Royale) |
| Dating: | India Royale |
| Net Worth: | USD 3 million (as of July 1, 2021) |
| Source of Wealth: | Rapping, Singing, Songwriting, and Other Ventures |
| Height: | 5′ 9″ (1.8 m) |
| Weight: | 72 kg; In pounds: 158 lbs. |
Early Life and Career Information
Lil Durk was born on October 19, 1992, in Chicago, Illinois, to Dontay Banks. Not much is known about his mother.
Durk experienced a rather deprived childhood after his father was arrested and charged with crack-cocaine distribution in 1993. At the time Dontay Banks was arrested, Durk was only seven months old.
Lil Durk gained initial fame on social media platforms like YouTube and Myspace. As his social media channels garnered more following, Durk shifted his focus to rapping. He took his rapping career more seriously when he became a father at the age of 17.
But with no capital to launch his rapping career, Lil Durk decided to drop out of Paul Robeson High School and joined the Chicago-based street gang, the Black Disciples. And that’s when his troubles with the law began.
In October 2011, Lil Durk was sentenced to prison on charges of illegal firearm possession. Around the same time, Durk signed with Cheef Keef and French Montana’s labels, after which he now considered himself a full-time rapper. He went on to release two singles – Sneak Dissin and I’ma Hitta – which were generally well-received.
After serving a two-month prison sentence, Lil Durk bounced back to the rap scene and released his second mixtape titled I’m Still a Hitta. He followed up with another mixtape on October 19, 2012, titled Life Ain’t No Joke, which would become one of his most commercially successful mixtapes to date. As of September 22, 2015, Life Ain’t No Joke had received more than 216,000 downloads on DatPiff alone.
In 2013, Lil Durk gained wider recognition after releasing another mixtape, Signed to the Streets. The same year, he guest-performed on singles by various artists, including Tae da Truth, Chinx Drugz, and Jim Jonez.
On July 7, 2014, Durk released his fifth mixtape, Signed to the Streets 2.
After releasing a series of mixtapes, Lil Durk eventually released his debut studio album on June 2, 2015, titled Remember My Name, with Def Jam Records. Later that year, Durk released his sixth mixtape, 300 Days, 300 Nights.
On July 22, 2016, Lil Durk released his second studio album. In November the same year, Durk released his seventh mixtape, They Forgot.
Lil Durk continued to release several mixtapes over the years, including Love Songs for the Streets, Supa Vultures (with Lil Reese), Signed to the Streets 2.5, Bloodas (with Tee Grizzley), and Just Cause Y’all Waited.
Durk has also followed up his first two studio albums with four more albums, namely:
• Signed to the Streets 3 (2018)
• Love Songs 4 the Streets 2 (2019)
• Just Cause Y’all Waited 2 (2020)
Lil Durk’s Net Worth
Lil Durk is not only the lead member of the OTF rap collective. He is also the group’s richest member.
As of July 1, 2021, Durk had a net worth of $3 million. For comparison’s sake, the second-richest OTF group member, Memo600, has an estimated net worth of $1 million. Third-placed is Booka600 with an estimated net worth of $550,000. King Von comes in fourth with a net worth of $400,000, as of the time of his death on November 6, 2020.
Like all the other members of the OTF collective, Lil Durk has earned his millions from his long career as a rapper and songwriter.
The following are some of Durk’s most commercially successful musical projects to date:
• The single My Beyoncé (released on November 20, 2015) was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on June 5, 2017, having sold equivalent units amounting to over 500,000 copies
• The single Like Me off the Remember My Name album (released on December 7, 2016) has also been certified gold by the RIAA
• The single 3 Headed Goat off the mixtape Just Cause Y’all Waited 2 (released on May 8, 2020) debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200
• The mixtape Life Ain’t No Joke (released on October 19, 2012) had been downloaded more than 216,000 times on DatPiff by September 22, 2015
• The mixtape Just Cause Y’all Waited (released on March 29, 2018) charted at the numbers 57, 28, and 22 on the Billboard 200, the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and the Rap Albums chart, respectively.
• The album Remember My Name (released on June 2, 2015) peaked at #14 on the Billboard 200 and sold 24,000 in its first week alone
Lessons from Lil Durk
1. Everything happens for a reason
Lil Durk became a father at the age of 17. Much as this might have been distressing for him considering that he was broke then, his new fatherhood status gave him a reason to pursue rapping more seriously.
2. Collaborate with like-minded partners
Durk is one of the many rap artists who has achieved tremendous success collaborating with fellow musicians. Some of the renowned names the rapper has partnered with include Drake, Meek Mill, and Lil Reese, to mention but a few.
3. Be consistent in what you do
Lil Durk’s rapping career has faced tumultuous times, mostly due to his never-ending legal troubles. However, the rapper has maintained consistency throughout the years, releasing at least one mixtape or studio album every year.
Famous Quotes from Lil Durk
“I’m on the road to riches, it’s just a Lil traffic.”
“Life is 10% what happens to you & 90% how you respond.”
“My whole life been nothing but pain, so if I tell you I love you I really do! I just have a hard time of showing it, nobody never showed me.”
“So many people switched up on me, changed on me, crossed me, left me when they said they’ll be here for me, it’s all good though I promise.”
“Stay working. Stay busy. It should be motivation instead of downtime because downtime is like being depressed. It shouldn’t be like that.”
Wrap Up
His controversial public life aside, Lil Durk is unquestionably one of the most accomplished rappers on the planet. Durk has surmounted seemingly unassailable financial and legal battles to become the renowned rapper he is today.