Raul Garcia (born c. 1996; better known by his stage name WHATUPRG) is an American rapper, singer, and producer from Gwinnett County, Georgia.
He’s one of the most distinctive voices in Christian hip-hop right now, known for fusing trap production with bilingual, faith-driven lyrics about his Mexican heritage.
Signed to Reach Records since 2018, WHATUPRG built his name on songs like “Glory,” “PRAISE,” and “God Made a Way.”
WHATUPRG at a Glance
| Personal | |
|---|---|
| Real Name | Raul Garcia (also written J. Raul Garcia) |
| Stage Name Meaning | Built from his own social media handle, “WHATUPRG” |
| Born | c. 1996, Gwinnett County, Georgia, USA |
| Age | Approximately 29 (as of 2026) |
| Nationality | American (Mexican descent) |
| Marital Status | Not publicly confirmed |
| Faith | Christian |
| Career | |
| Occupation | Rapper, singer, songwriter, producer, graphic designer |
| Genre(s) | Christian hip-hop, gospel rap, trap |
| Years Active | 2010s – present |
| Label | Reach Records (signed 2018) |
| Earlier Collective | indie.tribe (2017) |
| Own Collective | HEAVENONEARTH |
| Fanbase Name | The Hooligans |
| Notable Albums/EPs | Pleasant Hill (2018), RAUL (2019), New Hollywood (2022) |
| Notable Songs | “Glory,” “PRAISE,” “God Made a Way,” “Drip Lee” |
Early Life and Background
WHATUPRG was born Raul Garcia to Mexican immigrant parents and grew up in Gwinnett County, just outside Atlanta.
He’s talked openly about how his father’s deportation shaped his childhood, a wound he later turned into the opening track of his EP RAUL.
Music found him early. He started performing at age 7, doing covers at church-to-church kids’ services. By 12 he was writing his own songs.
At 14, his parents pooled money to help him fund his first self-released album. He’ll be the first to tell you it was rough. “It was mostly trash,” he once said with a laugh.
But that early failure pushed him to learn production himself. His father bought him a Mac with GarageBand, and that changed everything.
Discovering Christian Hip-Hop
As a teenager, Garcia started connecting with other young artists in the Christian hip-hop scene, including nobigdyl., Derek Minor, and Mogli the Iceburg. Those relationships would shape the next stage of his career more than any single song did.
Music Career and Rise to Prominence
Breakout with “Don’t Forget to Live” (2016)
His first real moment came in 2016 with the single “Don’t Forget to Live.” The video was shot almost on a whim, late one night, inside a Walmart.
It took off, and by 2017 fans were paying attention to songs like “Aquafina” and “Where You Been?” That same year, on October 31, 2017, he signed with nobigdyl.’s artist collective, indie.tribe.
By early 2018, Rapzilla named him one of its 15 Freshmen of the year, describing him as an anomaly: an artist with only a handful of solo tracks who was already one of the most talked-about young names in the genre because of his features, his production skills, and his design work.
Signing with Reach Records
On April 13, 2018, WHATUPRG signed with Reach Records, the Atlanta-based label co-owned by GRAMMY-winning artist Lecrae.
That year, the label released his debut EP, Pleasant Hill, led by the bilingual single “Wesside.” The project debuted at No. 7 on the iTunes Hip-Hop Albums chart and reached No. 11 on the Billboard Top Christian/Gospel Albums chart. He explained the title simply: “I live off Pleasant Hill. It’s where I’m at right now. It’s not perfect or where I want to be, but it’s me right now.”
He also contributed a verse to Reach’s 116-artist collective single “Light Work,” alongside Andy Mineo, Lecrae, Trip Lee, Tedashii, and others, as part of the label’s 2018 Light Bearer campaign.
If you’re curious how this corner of the music industry works more broadly, this breakdown of what gospel rap music is and why it’s growing is worth a look.
RAUL (2019) and Confronting His Story
In March 2019, WHATUPRG released his second EP, RAUL, named after his own first name. The seven-track project opens with “Freeze,” where he revisits his father’s deportation and how it reshaped his family.
It’s a heavier, more personal record than Pleasant Hill, built around the tension between his Mexican heritage and his Christian faith existing side by side in a country that often treats them as separate.
Later that year, he released “Glory,” featuring fellow Reach Records producer GAWVI, one of the biggest tracks of his career to that point.
The song became a fan favorite and helped cement WHATUPRG as more than a rising name; he was becoming a fixture.
“When we admit our brokenness, that’s when we’re closest to freedom.” – WHATUPRG, on the themes behind RAUL
New Hollywood (2022) and the Long Wait
Fans waited nearly three years between projects. WHATUPRG’s debut full-length album, New Hollywood, was teased as early as 2020 and delayed multiple times before finally landing in 2022.
During that stretch, he stayed active with features, including “Save Us” alongside Lecrae and 1K Phew, and the 2021 posse cut “PRAISE,” a 24-hour-written track featuring ten artists, among them Foggieraw, Ty Brasel, 1K Phew, and Aha Gazelle.
Because he handles much of his own production, writing, and visual direction, his workflow says a lot about how independent-minded Christian artists build a sound from the ground up; this guide on how to become a music producer covers some of the same fundamentals he’s talked about picking up on his own as a teenager.
Recent Work: Going Global (2023-2025)
WHATUPRG kept releasing steadily after New Hollywood, including 2023’s “God Made a Way” and 2024’s “This Time Last Year.”
In late 2024, he released “RIO,” a collaboration with Brazilian gospel trap artist NESK ONLY, marking the first crossover of its kind between his lane and the Brazilian Christian music scene.
The single followed his debut show in Brazil, where he performed for a sold-out crowd of 1,800 people. He continued into 2025 with “CIEN DOCENAS.”
Around this same period, he launched his own artist collective, HEAVENONEARTH, bringing together artists like Aklesso, Rhomar Jessy, and Kaleb Mitchell around a shared verse from Matthew 6:10: “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Personal Life
WHATUPRG keeps most of his personal life away from interviews and press coverage. He’s spoken plenty about his parents, his father’s deportation, and his upbringing in Gwinnett County, but there’s no public record of a wife, girlfriend, or children tied to him.
His fanbase, which he calls The Hooligans, knows him mainly through his music, his social media, and the occasional tour stop rather than personal disclosures.
Theology and Artistic Philosophy
WHATUPRG doesn’t separate his faith from his identity as a Mexican-American artist; he treats them as inseparable, even when they pull in different directions.
His music leans into that tension instead of smoothing it over. Songs like “Freeze” don’t offer easy answers about immigration or family separation. They sit in the pain first, then look for where God shows up inside it.
That’s part of why his sound works. He’s not writing worship music dressed up in trap production. He’s writing about a specific kid from Gwinnett County who grew up between two cultures and one faith, and he trusts that specificity to connect more than a general message ever could.
Influence and Legacy
WHATUPRG’s biggest contribution to Christian hip-hop so far is proof that a bilingual, culturally specific voice can find a real audience inside the genre without softening either half of that identity.
His 2024 Brazil show and the “RIO” collaboration point to a bigger goal: connecting Christian hip-hop’s English-speaking base with Latin America’s growing gospel trap scene.
He’s also become a model for the do-it-yourself artist, someone who raps, produces, writes, edits video, and does his own graphic design, all skills he taught himself starting in his early teens.
Awards and Recognition
- Named a Rapzilla Freshman for 2018
- Pleasant Hill debuted at No. 7 on the iTunes Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 11 on Billboard’s Top Christian/Gospel Albums chart (2018)
- “Aquafina” was in contention for Rapzilla’s Best Single of the Year
- Sold-out debut performance in Brazil to a crowd of 1,800 (2024)
Interesting Facts
- His stage name almost didn’t happen. He was going by a different name a week before a release when a friend suggested “WHATUPRG,” since that was already his social media handle.
- He discovered reggae music at age 7, which planted the seed for the Latin rhythms he later folded into his own sound.
- The viral video for “Don’t Forget to Live” was filmed inside a Walmart almost on impulse.
- He co-signs from Lecrae early in his career, which helped fuel serious buzz before he’d even released a full project.
- His EP RAUL is literally named after his own first name, a deliberate dare to fans to see the person behind the music.
Timeline
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| c. 1996 | Born Raul Garcia in Gwinnett County, Georgia |
| Age 7 | Starts performing at church-to-church kids’ services |
| Age 12 | Begins writing his own songs |
| Age 14 | Self-releases his first, parent-funded album |
| 2016 | Breaks out with “Don’t Forget to Live” |
| Oct 2017 | Joins nobigdyl.’s indie.tribe collective |
| 2018 | Named a Rapzilla Freshman; signs with Reach Records; releases Pleasant Hill EP |
| 2019 | Releases RAUL EP and the single “Glory” featuring GAWVI |
| 2021 | Releases posse cut “PRAISE” with ten featured artists |
| 2022 | Releases debut album New Hollywood |
| 2023 | Releases “God Made a Way” |
| 2024 | Performs sold-out debut show in Brazil; releases “RIO” featuring NESK ONLY; launches HEAVENONEARTH collective |
| 2025 | Releases “CIEN DOCENAS” |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is WHATUPRG’s real name?
His real name is Raul Garcia. His EP RAUL is named directly after it.
How old is WHATUPRG?
He’s approximately 29 years old as of 2026, based on age references he and his label have given in interviews across the years. His exact birth date hasn’t been confirmed through any primary source.
What nationality is WHATUPRG?
He’s American, born in Georgia to Mexican immigrant parents, and he identifies strongly with his Mexican-American heritage throughout his music.
What does the name WHATUPRG mean?
It comes from his own social media handle. He changed his artist name from an earlier one to WHATUPRG about a week before a 2016 release, on a friend’s suggestion.
Is WHATUPRG a Christian artist?
Yes. He’s signed to Reach Records, one of the leading labels in Christian hip-hop, and his music consistently explores his faith alongside his cultural identity.
Is WHATUPRG married? Does he have a wife?
There’s no public confirmation that he’s married or in a relationship. He keeps his personal life private and hasn’t discussed a wife or girlfriend in interviews or on his social media.
What is WHATUPRG’s height?
His height isn’t publicly documented anywhere reliable.
What is the song “Glory” by WHATUPRG?
“Glory” is a 2019 single featuring fellow Reach Records artist GAWVI. It’s one of WHATUPRG’s biggest and best-known tracks.
What is the song “PRAISE” by WHATUPRG?
“PRAISE” is a 2021 posse cut written and recorded in 24 hours, featuring WHATUPRG alongside Foggieraw, Ty Brasel, Parris Chariz, NOT KLYDE, 1K Phew, J. Monty, Aha Gazelle, 350, and Kaleb Mitchell.
Where can I buy WHATUPRG merch?
Merchandise tied to his releases and tour dates has historically been sold through Reach Records’ online store and promoted through his own social channels, rather than through a single standalone shop.
