Megan Thee Stallion (full name: Megan Jovon Ruth Pete), a Houston rapper, is known for her sexual bravado and over-the-top rhymes — and it’s clear that the “WAP” star has come a long way since her debut song in 2017.

Megan Thee Stallion parents: meet Holly Thomas

What you probably didn’t realize was that Megan’s talent and desire to perform sprang from her parents. Unfortunately, Megan’s parents died before her record-breaking career could really take off.

Megan captioned an Instagram photo of herself with her father “the best Dad in the world, my first best friend, my partner in crime when my Mom fussed at us” this past Father’s Day.

Her father, Joseph Pete Jr., was a “full-time hustler,” and she claims he missed the first eight years of her life while incarcerated on weapons charges.

Megan stated in an interview with Marie Claire in 2020 that her father died in 2011 while she was 15 and a freshman in high school. She does, however, thank her father for her confidence and awareness of what to accept from others.

“I watched how he handled my mother, and I saw how my father treated me,” she explained. “I am surrounded by so many powerful positive influences. I’m not going to reduce my expectations.”