Credit: Eddie Rissling

Styles P is a renowned MC, both as a solo artist and member of the iconic LOX trio. With over 15 solo albums and five projects alongside Jadakiss and Sheek Louch, he’s built a catalogue that can go head-to-head with some of the best rappers of all time. But there comes a time in a musician’s life where enough is enough, and that’s where the Queens native is at.

In 2023, Styles announced that he was calling it quits on his solo career. It was the end of an era, having reached his commercial peak with his debut album A Gangster and a Gentleman in 2002. The album reached number six on the Billboard 200 and is home to his hit single, ‘Good Times’, produced by Swizz Beatz.

In his announcement on social media, Styles admitted he had run himself down as a result of being a hard-working MC who struggles to multitask. Despite admitting his faults in that department, he believed it was his constant drive that kept him going when things got tough. However, all of that hard work had an impact on his family and co-workers.

On top of that, he felt that his discography was strong enough to end things there and then, allowing him to focus on other ventures. “If you look at the amount of solo albums I have compared to artists my age, I think I’ve done my job, and I’ve done it well,” he told Billboard. “I’ve provided fans with so much music, and it consumes a large part of my life. But there’s a lot of other things I want to do, and now I’m ready to do that.”

He continued, “At this point in my life, I’m focused on other things, like helping people through my creativity in a way outside of my music career. I’ve always been a messenger, whether it be for the streets or my people, and now I’ve grown into being a different type of messenger.”

Styles released his final solo album, Penultimate: A Calm Wolf Is Still a Wolf, in January 2023. Although The LOX are still alive and well, the group haven’t released a project since 2020’s Living Off Xperience, which featured everyone from DMX to Benny The Butcher. Still, the trio have been on tour in 2025, performing a headline show at London’s Indigo at The O2 in September.

With his solo career behind him, Styles is looking forward to the next stage of his life. “I found myself going down so many avenues since I knew there was more I wanted to do,” he explained. “I’m somebody that once I start or explore something, I’m going to dig deep and finish it, which is really what’s fuelling this next chapter for me. My curiosity and determination to chase what I want for myself.”

He’s looking to utilise his passion to reach his full potential. “It’s all about completing goals now,” he said. “You can’t do that without using your talents, energy, creativity and passions. I’m putting myself in a position to say, ‘All right, here’s what I’m working on, here’s how I’m going to do it.’ And once I see I’m going to do something, I like to complete the mission.”