George Perry Floyd was a 46-year-old black man who was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and raised in the Third Ward[26] of Houston, Texas. He attended Yates High School, where he played on the basketball and football teams. He attended South Florida Community College from 1993 to 1995 and played on the school's basketball team. Floyd returned to Houston and entered the local hip hop scene as an automotive customizer;[30] he joined the hip hop group Screwed Up Click and rapped under the stage name Big Floyd.] The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Floyd was charged with armed robbery in 2007, and in 2009 took a plea deal to be sentenced to five years' imprisonment. In 2014, Floyd moved to Minnesota. in search of employment and a new life. He took on two jobs: working as a truck driver and as a restaurant security guard at Conga Latin Bistro. He worked at the restaurant for five years, but lost the job because of Minnesota's stay-at-home order during the COVID-19 pandemic.He was the father of two daughters, ages six and 22, who remained in Houston, and an adult son in Bryan, Texas.