Mero Concerts Setlist

In 2016, Enes Meral was an average adolescent in Rüsselsheim uploading rap videos recorded on his cellphone to Instagram. But the son of this Turkish Black Sea immigrant would go on to be one of German rap's most meteoric success stories, with millions simply calling him Mero.

His breakthrough came when established rapper Xatar recognized his talent and signed him to Groove Attack. By the time "Baller los" came out in late 2018, it was less a debut single than a phenomenon, debuting on the German and Austrian charts at number one. He followed up with "Hobby Hobby," the first German-language rap track to make Spotify's global top 200 and which broke daily and weekly streaming records.

Mero's streak ran through 2019 with two albums, "Ya Hero Ya Mero" and "Unikat," and guest appearances on Eno's "Ferrari" and Loredana's "Kein Plan" topping the German charts. His success was a sign of the contribution social media made in propelling a new generation of artists to stardom and a sign of greater representation of German-Turkish artists in the nation's rap scene.

Able to go from Instagram freestyling to album charting within three years, Mero is hip-hop's internet generation rags-to-riches tale in which talent, internet personality, and actual cultural representation can catapult one to superstardom.