Jonatan Aron Leandoer Håstad (born 18 July 1996), known professionally as Yung Lean, is a Swedish rapper. Yung Lean rose to prominence in 2013 with his song "Ginseng Strip 2002", which went viral on YouTube. Later that same year, he released his debut mixtape, Unknown Death 2002, and the following year, he released his debut studio album, Unknown Memory.
Yung Lean has since released the mixtapes Frost God (2016), Poison Ivy (2018) and Stardust (2022), and the studio albums Warlord (2016), Stranger (2017), Starz (2020), Psykos (2024) and Jonatan (2025). He released the albums Nectar (2019), Blodhundar & Lullabies (2020) and Sugar World (2023) under the pseudonym Jonatan Leandoer96, a project which strays away from his hip-hop roots and incorporates elements of indie rock and neofolk.
Early life Håstad was born on 18 July 1996 in Stockholm, Sweden, to , a Swedish poet, fantasy author, and translator of French literature who owned a book publishing company and , a former human rights activist who worked with LGBT groups in Russia, Vietnam, and South America, serving as the Swedish ambassador to Albania from 2019 to 2023. He said in an interview with the New York Times that his grandfather was Jewish.
Håstad spent his early childhood in Belarus, where his mother moved the family partially so that Håstad could have a similar childhood to hers. The family returned to Sweden and settled in Stockholm when Håstad was somewhere between the ages of three and five. He was raised in the city's Södermalm area. In between, Håstad was a student at UNIS Hanoi from 6th to 10th grade. During his time in high school, Håstad often got in trouble for doing drugs or writing graffiti. He also had a job at a local McDonald's. When he was 15, he was put on probation for smoking cannabis. Håstad began to develop an interest in hip hop music, later mentioning 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin', The Latin Kings's Mitt Kvarter and Nas's Illmatic as his early influences. Håstad was classmates with Bladee's younger brother, Gus Reichwald, in the 9th grade, with Håstad having noticed Reichwald wearing Billionaire Boys Club and Gucci Mane merchandise. Reichwald told Håstad his older brother had influenced him to wear these brands, and later introduced the two.
Career 2012–2013: Career beginnings, Lavender and Unknown Death 2002
Håstad, Yung Sherman and Yung Gud eventually formed the group "Sad Boys" as a trio. By 2012, Yung Gud and Yung Sherman were producing and mixing music while Håstad had begun writing lyrics and recording vocals in a makeshift studio in his basement. They shared the music they made on the platforms SoundCloud and Tumblr,Capell, Frances (2013) "Yung Lean Doer Is the Weirdest 16-year-old White Swedish Rapper You'll Hear This Week ", Noisey (Vice), 23 April 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2014Shapiro, David (2014) "Yung Lean, King of the Sad Boys ", The New Yorker, 14 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014Friedlander, Emilie (2014) ""Taking Arizona Iced Tea and Making It Cry": An Interview with Yung Lean and the Sad Boys ", The Fader, 16 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014 where Lean began to generate a large following. Sad Boys performed their first show at Röda Sten Konsthall in Gothenburg, Sweden on 5 May 2013.
Yung Lean became widely known when the music video for his track "Ginseng Strip 2002" went viral."Yung Lean – 16-åringen från Stockholm får världen att häpna ", sverigeradio.se, 7 May 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2014"The New New: 15 European Rappers You Should Know ", XXL, 9 June 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014"Видео: Кой шведски рапър трябва да чуете според "Мандо Диао" ", Dnevnik, 4 July 2014. Retrieved 6 July 2014"Yung Lean ♦ Ginseng Strip 2002 ♦", YouTube. Retrieved 9 October 2020 Later in 2013, he put out his first official releases: Marble Phone, a single featuring Kreayshawn, Unknown Death 2002 and an EP titled Lavender which includes the track "Ginseng Strip 2002" along with other songs that were cut from Unknown Death 2002. Consequence of Sound placed "Ginseng Strip 2002" at number 44 on their "Top 50 Songs of 2013", while Vibe included Unknown Death 2002 in their list, "The 10 Most Overlooked Debut Rap Mixtapes of 2013", describing it as "a natural progression from the freely associative, often nonsensical rhymes of Lil' B with a keener sense of melody".Weinstein, Max (2013) "The 10 Most Overlooked Debut Rap Mixtapes of 2013 ", Vibe, 5 December 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2014
In 2013, Yung Lean and Sad Boys toured throughout Europe. Later that same year, Acclaim Magazine had Yung Lean as their guest for a Q&A "smalltalk" segment, where they asked him about a wide variety of miscellaneous things, including his favourite hangover cure and his desktop wallpaper.Brent, Jonathan (2013) "Small Talk: Yung Lean: A #VERYEMOTIONAL Q&A With the Swedish Rapper Going Viral Right Now ", Acclaim, 14 July 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2014
2014–2016: Unknown Memory and Warlord
In 2014, Yung Lean and Sad Boys embarked on the White Marble Tour, playing in 24 cities across Europe. Shortly after the conclusion of this tour Sad Boys announced a further Black Marble Tour, which would include several performances in cities across North America. The first of these shows took place in July at the Webster Hall in New York City, and was well received by writers for publications such as XXL, and The New York Times.Friedlander, Emile (2014) "Swedish Rapper Yung Lean Talks Gold, Phones in "Motorola" ", The Fader, 19 February 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014Plaugic, Lizzie (2014) "Watch: Yung Lean – "Motorola" Video ", CMJ, 19 February 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014Malik, Stephanie (2014) "Exclusive: Yung Lean & Sad Boys Team Up With Shallowww For a New Aesthetic ", Bullett, 7 March 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014"Noisey Presents Yung Lean's First North American Show in New York City ", Noisey (Vice), 3 June 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014Plaugic, Lizzie (2014) "Yung Lean Is Coming To America, Drops "Yoshi City" Video ", CMJ, 18 June 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014"Yung Lean & Sadboys @ Cabaret Underworld ", Métro, 5 June 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014"Yung Lean", The New Yorker. Retrieved 2 July 2014Rys, Dan (2014) "Yung Lean Surprises With An Energetic Show In NYC ", XXL, 10 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014Caramanica, Jon (2014) "From Neophyte to Pit Bull, in a Fun House Mirror of Hip-Hop Mannerisms ", The New York Times, 10 July 2014. Retrieved 1 August 2014
Yung Lean starred on Studio PSL in May 2014"Se första avsnittet Studio PSL här ", PSL, 9 May 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2014 and was also one of five final nominees for the 2014 P3 Gold Awards in the Hip Hop/Soul category."Nominerade till P3 Guld 2014: Årets Hiphop/Soul ", P3 Guld Awards, 3 December 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2014
Yung Lean released his debut full-length album, titled Unknown Memory on 23 September 2014.Raymer, Miles (2014) "Here's what you need to know about Internet-famous rapper Yung Lean ", Entertainment Weekly, 5 July 2014. Retrieved 6 July 2014Yung Lean YouTube Channel " " The album was accompanied with North American and European tours, beginning on 1 December in New York with a nearly sold-out show on Webster Hall's main ballroom stage.Friedlander, Emile (2014) "Yung Lean Announces Unknown Memory Tour ", The Fader, 24 September 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2014
Yung Lean released his second full-length album, Warlord, on 25 February 2016; he also released a line of clothing, "Sad Boys Entertainment". Håstad modelled for Calvin Klein's July 2016, AW16 Campaign. During his Warlord American tour, his tour bus in Pennsylvania was shot at. Håstad was also featured on Frank Ocean's critically acclaimed Blonde where he provided backup vocals on the songs "Godspeed" and "Self Control". According to Håstad, his part on the project was recorded when he was seventeen in Ocean's apartment in London.
Yung Lean released a surprise track on 25 November 2016 titled "Hennessy & Sailor Moon (feat. Bladee)". On 14 December 2016 he released the mixtape Frost God containing eight tracks including "Hennessy & Sailor Moon" and "Crystal City" which featured A$AP Ferg.
2017–2019: Stranger, Poison Ivy and Nectar
Håstad released his third studio album Stranger on 10 November 2017, with the singles "Red Bottom Sky", "Hunting My Own Skin", and "Skimask", through Stockholm label YEAR0001.
In an interview with Complex in January 2018, Håstad announced he was writing several film scripts, including one based around Swedish serial killer John Ausonius, best known as "The Laser Man". In February 2018, Yung Lean released the single "King Cobra" with Thaiboy Digital, as well as a collaboration with Converse that consisted of a shoe and several items of clothing titled "One Star Toxic".
On 2 November 2018, Håstad released his third mixtape Poison Ivy with the single "Happy Feet" released on 24 October 2018. The album, a collaboration with Whitearmor, a member of Drain Gang with whom Håstad frequently collaborates, debuted at number 44 on the Sweden Albums Charts, the Sverigetopplistan.
On 25 January 2019, Yung Lean released his first full-length album under Jonatan Leandoer96, Nectar, with the singles "Wooden Girl", "Nectar" and "Tangerine Warrior". The album strays away from Leandoer's sad hip-hop roots and goes for a blend of indie rock and neofolk.
2020–2024: Starz, Blodhundar & Lullabies, In My Head, Stardust, Sugar World and Psykos On 26 February 2020, Yung Lean released the single "Boylife in EU", produced by frequent collaborator Whitearmor. On 27 March 2020, Yung Lean uploaded a 44-second teaser featuring a mix of songs from his upcoming fourth-studio album Starz. Owing to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the Starz tour, which was due to begin in late March, was cancelled, and on 2 April 2020 Yung Lean streamed a 45-minute concert from the back of a truck in an undisclosed location, the stream featuring a mix of songs from previous works, as well as newly released "Boylife in EU". On 14 April 2020 the second single from Starz was released, "Violence + Pikachu". Starz was released on 15 May 2020, the album being produced by Whitearmor and Yung Sherman and featuring Ariel Pink on the album's title track.
On 9 November 2020, Yung Lean announced the release of his second full-length Jonatan Leandoer96 album, "Blodhundar & Lullabies". The 16-track album eventually released a month later on 21 December.
On 27 November 2020, the documentary Yung Lean: In My Head premiered in cinemas. Directed by music documentarian Henrik Burman, the documentary charts Leandoer's early career up until the release of Stranger. This includes reflections on the events that occurred in Miami from Leandoer, fellow artist Bladee and additional persons including manager Oskar Ekman, former associate Steven Machat and journalists from a variety of outlets including The Fader and Pitchfork. The documentary was originally scheduled to premiere at the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It released digitally and in a limited number of cinemas in the fall of the same year instead.
On 8 April 2022, Yung Lean released a 12-track mixtape titled "Stardust" containing features from FKA Twigs, Skrillex, Drain Gang and Ant Wan.
On 14 December 2022, the single "Blue Light" was released as Jonatan Leandoer96, accompanied by a music video directed by Olle Knutson and Philip Hovensjö. This announced his full-length album titled Sugar World, which was subsequently released on 3 February 2023.
Yung Lean was featured on the track "Parasail" from Travis Scott's Utopia, released on 28 July 2023. He released Psykos, a collaborative album with Bladee, on 13 March 2024. Yung Lean was featured alongside Swedish artist Robyn on a remix of Charli XCX's single "360", released on 31 May 2024.