Originally from Atlanta, Latto started rapping at age ten after being born Alyssa Michelle Stephens in 1998. She adopted the stage name Miss Mulatto when she first identified as biracial, with a Black father and a white mother. Her local following grew through performances, openings, and her social media activity before she appeared on TV. Queen Latifah and Jermaine Dupri produced The Rap Game on Lifetime in 2016, when she was 16 years old. In The Rap Game, Stephens beat out four other aspiring rappers after an eight-week boot camp-style competition. Following her win, she signed a recording contract with Dupri's So So Def Recordings and released the single "No More Talking." Before 2016 was up, the rapper released an eight-song self-titled project. In the following weeks, she began composing new material under the name Latto. 

    A ten-song mixtape with the same title was released the following year. His first EP was Big Latto, which was released in 2019. She gained fame with the single "B*tch from Da Souf," which became her biggest song to date. Millions of people streamed the single as a single. Hit the Latto is her second EP, released in November 2019. 

    In August 2020, RCA Records released "Queen of Da South", her debut album. Gucci Mane, City Girls, 21 Savage, and others made guest appearances on the album, which reached number 44 on the Billboard 200. It was officially announced in May 2021 that she would now be known as Latto. The first single from her sophomore full-length album, 777, was released in September 2022, and it reached number 14. Featuring 21 Savage, "Southside" and "Wheelie" are among the other tracks on the album.