The first song that he remixed was Crime Mob’s “Knuck If You Buck”; however, he did not receive any attention until 2014, with the release of his song “Hot Nigga”. The song uses the instrumental from Lloyd Banks’ 2012 song “Jackpot”. The song and its accompanying music video went viral shortly after being uploaded to YouTube in the spring of 2014. Shmurda’s signature “Shmoney dance”, which he performs in the video, soon became an internet meme and was featured in numerous popular Vines from the latter half of 2014; it was also replicated by Beyoncé and Jay-Z during their On the Run Tour and by Canadian rapper Drake while hosting the 2014 ESPY Awards, among other celebrities. Freestyles over the instrumental were made by a number of rappers after its release, including Juicy J,French Montana,Lil’ Kim,Gunplay, and T.I. Following the song’s viral success, Shmurda was signed to Epic Records, and the song was officially released as his debut single under Epic. The song topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop songs chart, and peaked at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, eventually being certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The music video received over 649 million views on YouTube as of July 2020. The song’s official remix—featuring guest vocals from Fabolous, Chris Brown, Jadakiss, Rowdy Rebel, Busta Rhymes, and Yo Gotti—was released on September 4, 2014. A reggae remix of the song was also released in August 2014 that featured Junior Reid, Mavado, Popcaan, and Jah X. Shmurda also became known for his song “Bobby Bitch” which peaked at number 92 on the Billboard Hot 100. His debut EP, Shmurda She Wrote, was released on November 10, 2014.
Shmurda’s debut studio album with Epic Records was scheduled for release in 2016, being executively produced by Jahlil Beats. It was postponed, however, due to his imprisonment.
Shmurda freestyled for rapper Meek Mill in February 2017 and claimed that he was still writing music while in prison.
While incarcerated, he featured on fellow rapper 6ix9ine’s single “Stoopid”, released on October 5, 2018, phoning in his verses over the prison telephone.