In August 2011, ASAP Rocky followed with ' Peso', which first appeared on Internet blogs and eventually received radio airplay on New York City's Hot 97. He and Polo Grounds president Bryan Leach, also a Harlem native, subsequently spent time talking about music and lifestyles.

However, he held off from any deal with a label, instead wanting to explore other pursuits. He was courted by several labels, including the RCA-distributed Polo Grounds Music. He released a music video for his song 'Purple Swag' in July, garnering Internet buzz and attention from record labels, despite negative feedback from his native hip hop scene in New York. In May 2011, ASAP Rocky quit selling drugs and decided to focus on a career in rapping. On October 29, 2021, ASAP Rocky re-released the mixtape on all streaming platforms. It was included in several year-end top album lists by critics and publications. ASAP received widespread acclaim from critics, who praised the production aesthetic and ASAP Rocky's charismatic rapping style. The mixtape was promoted with two singles, ' Peso' and 'Purple Swag', which garnered ASAP Rocky mainstream attention and led to his first record deal. His lyrics deal with themes about moral decay, including promiscuity and drug use, expressed through his boastful, tempered flow. Its production features woozy soundscapes, low and mid-tempo beats, and chopped and screwed choruses. The mixtape's music incorporates stylistic and production elements of hip hop scenes distinct from ASAP Rocky's hometown New York scene, particularly Southern hip hop. The mixtape also features guest rappers Schoolboy Q and Fat Tony, as well as members of ASAP Mob, ASAP Rocky's hip hop collective.

It features production by Clams Casino, ASAP Ty Beats, DJ Burn One, and SpaceGhostPurrp, among others. ASAP (stylized as $AP) is the debut mixtape by American rapper ASAP Rocky, who released it as a free digital download on October 31, 2011.

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