State Champ Radio R&B/Hip-Hop
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In 2018, Nielsen Soundscan’s year-end music industry report confirmed that R&B/hip-hop was the most popular genre in America. Nine of the 10 most consumed songs in the United States were hip-hop/R&B songs, and as streaming became the dominant way to consume music, eight of the 10 most streamed artists were rappers.
That report focused on 2017, but the period between 2015-2018 was a crescendo for the genre. Established artists like Ye, Jay-Z and Lil Wayne still had more in the tank; younger stars like Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Nicki Minaj put their mark on the culture; and rising stars like Pop Smoke, Juice WRLD, XXXTENTACION and Cardi B were already scoring RIAA plaques. Everything was pointing up.
Looking at the hip-hop landscape today, you might get a different feeling. Rap is still enormously popular, but its growth is slowing. Luminate’s mid-year report revealed that R&B/hip-hop still has the largest overall market share of any genre in the United States with 27.6% — but that’s a decline from last year’s 28.4%, even though it widened its lead at the top in terms of overall equivalent album units. The genre’s total on-demand streaming growth is up 6.2% in 2022, but that’s lower than the rate of the market overall, which is up 11.6%.
“I will say, I’m concerned,” says Carl Cherry, Spotify’s creative director and head of urban. Cherry says he’s been alarmed about rap since last year: “2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, those years felt magical. My concern is that the magic is gone.”
There’s a variety of reasons the genre’s future feels precarious. First, rap’s superstars like Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Post Malone are aging into a different chapter of their careers, less invested in chasing hits. This year, Drake dropped the dancefloor detour, Honestly, Nevermind, while Kendrick made the deeply personal Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers and Post Malone released his darkest album yet, Twelve Carat Toothache. The albums debuted with respectable numbers, but slid down the Billboard 200 relatively quickly after — and while each of their previous albums spawned Hot 100-topping smashes (“God’s Plan,” “HUMBLE,” “rockstar”), this time, between the three of them, only Drake’s “Jimmy Cooks” went to No. 1, where it lasted a week. Post told Billboard earlier this year, “I don’t need a No. 1; that doesn’t matter to me no more, and at a point, it did.”
Those artists are carrying even more weight because of rap’s second problem; a number of would-be superstars died young. The late Pop Smoke, Juice WRLD and XXXTENTACION were three of the most important rappers of the past few years, not only because they moved units but because they were stylistic innovators. Their premature passings leave a void at the genre’s center — one that has only widened with the further losses of Nipsey Hussle, Mac Miller, Lil Peep, King Von, Young Dolph and, most recently, PnB Rock.
“Unfortunately, we have those tragedies that don’t let those culture-shifters see out their days and fulfill their purpose for the sub-genre they’re repping,” says Letty Peniche, who hosts Power Mornings on Power 106 in L.A. “We didn’t just lose [XXX, Pop, Juice], it also halted that wave.”
Then there’s rap’s third problem: There aren’t as many hot prospects among rap’s rookie class.
“The last couple of years, we’re not seeing as many new stars emerge,” says Cherry. “[From 2015-2018], there were just a lot of guys we would see seemingly come out of nowhere and become huge stars and put up numbers that would rival people that have been established. We’re not really seeing that right now.”
It’s not like we haven’t seen breakout rappers in 2022 — artists like GloRilla, SleazyWorld Go and Yeat are talented and may have bright futures ahead of them. But with the exception of Yeat, their success is tied to hit singles and they haven’t established their bonafides via full-length projects. While they’ve performed impressively for newcomers, they haven’t put up near the superstar-type numbers Cherry refers to.
Meanwhile, some of rap’s most promising upstarts have seen their fortunes turn quickly. DaBaby’s 2020 album, Blame It On Baby, moved 124,000 album-equivalent units in its first week; after a couple of underperforming projects rehashing the same formula, 2022’s Baby On Baby 2 moved a mere 17,000 in its first week. Megan Thee Stallion won the Grammy for best new artist, but her Traumazine album did lower first-week numbers than her debut and it hasn’t spawned a hit close to “Savage.” Roddy Ricch scored the last major pre-pandemic No. 1 hit with “The Box,” but his last single as a lead artist, “Stop Breathing,” has yet to hit the Hot 100. One of 2022’s bright spots was watching Gunna ascend from Young Thug protégé to standalone star as his “Pushing P” became the kind of cultural meme rap routinely produces, yet his achievement was overshadowed when he and Thug were arrested on a RICO charge that may land them both in prison for years.
Some of this might have been inevitable. In many ways, the rap audience was primed for the shift to streaming, resulting in the genre over-indexing in its early years. “The movement of mixtapes out of the free music world of LiveMixtapes, DatPiff and blogs into monetized, proper releases was really key,” says Signal Records founder and CEO Jeff Vaughn, about the 2015-2018 period. “You had this segment of music consumption that had always flown under the radar, but now it was trackable, and there was money being made.”
As the pendulum swings the other way, the playing field is beginning to even out — as country, rock, pop and Latin catch up to hip-hop’s streaming advantage. At the same time, many artists from those genres — including this year’s most dominant artist, Bad Bunny — are now undeniably influenced by hip-hop, but their wins don’t count towards hip-hop’s market share.
Upheaval has become the norm in all genres over the past two years. The biggest factor was the COVID-19 pandemic, which put a pause on the entire music industry and hindered the momentum of countless careers. But there’s also the rise of TikTok, which has had a seismic effect on marketing — turning songs into viral sensations seemingly overnight and creating all sorts of breakout hits, but few lasting careers.
“What I’m seeing is, people stick around for the piece of the song that they like,” explains Peniche. “They don’t want to hear the rest of whatever song TikTok put in their mind. You don’t even know if you’re going to like the full song or even the artist. You fall in love with the snippet — but after that, what happens?”
Peniche adds that things like TikTok have aided in radio’s changing role in music, from breaking hits to simply reminding people of their favorites. While TikTok has helped fuel 2020s rap hits like BRS Kash’s “Throat Baby” and Popp Hunna’s “Adderall (Corvette Corvette),” as well as more crossover-ready breakthroughs like Doja Cat’s “Say So” and Jack Harlow’s “What’s Poppin,” it may already be seeing diminishing returns.
“There’s these songs that gain traction on TikTok but they don’t go all the way,” says Cherry. “They’ll have a lot of streams on Spotify, they’ll be added to big playlists maybe, but they don’t go the distance.”
Cherry also points out how TikTok has also helped keep older music, like J. Cole’s “No Role Modelz,” consistently successful. “The reality of the market is now, you’re not just competing with other new music, you’re competing with the best music period from past or present,” adds Vaughn. “In the meantime, you’re gonna have a lot of first week sales in the 10-30,000 range. Until something changes, that’s just probably the new reality of the business.”
These days, YouTube and TikTok celebrities are competing for attention with musicians, while today’s influencers may also be discouraging tomorrow’s would-be musicians. “People can get rich from their bedrooms now,” says Peniche. “People can get rich off of Twitch playing games. Like, ‘Why would I be out here hustling or going on the road for scraps if I can do something at home and get rich off of TikTok videos?’ ”
Vaughn thinks the problem goes beyond TikTok, though: “Is there more competition for people’s time now than there was five years ago? Yes. Are major [labels’] market share and influence declining relative to their ability to move the market? Yes. Is there more money, focus, attention and people in the hip-hop space now than five years ago? Yes. So all those things combined make it a very different landscape.”
The pandemic also upset the release schedule and forced concert cancellations. Cherry recalled a moment in 2021 when he asked two party promoters what was ringing off in the clubs. They struggled to come up with an answer besides Drake’s “Way 2 Sexy.” “What point in hip-hop history have we had a shortage of club bangers?” asked Cherry. “Never.”
Despite all these worries, there have been bright spots this year. Future is enjoying his biggest commercial year yet, with his I Never Liked You album posting the best solo first-week numbers of his career and “WAIT FOR U” becoming his first Hot 100 No. 1 as a lead artist. Lil Baby, Jack Harlow and Moneybagg Yo continue to be proven hitmakers. Rod Wave, Polo G and YoungBoy Never Broke Again are cult artists with huge followings. Doja Cat, Lil Nas X and The Kid LAROI toe the line of rap and pop, but have put up big numbers with their albums and scored massive crossover hits on the Hot 100.
“Overall, I’m still incredibly bullish on the art form,” says Vaughn. “It’s been here for 50 years, I don’t think it’s going anywhere.”
Ultimately, as Luminate’s mid-year report notes, hip-hop is still No. 1. But culture can’t afford to be creatively stagnant. To stay fresh, it needs to find a spark.
“I’m always worried about where it’s heading,” says Cherry. “But music is cyclical. I don’t think we’ll ever live in a world where hip-hop isn’t the most influential type of music and culture. That’ll never happen. Hip-hop will always be in this position where it just helps shape [culture] and makes everything move.”
Kanye West continued his streak of spouting anti-Semitic comments in a heated argument with Chris Cuomo Monday (Oct. 17) on Cuomo’s self-titled new show on NewsNation. Before angrily hanging up on the show’s host, the rapper — who now goes by Ye — gave an update on his plans to buy the conservative social media platform Parler, spoke about ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s “left agenda” politics, and explained how he justifies his ongoing campaign of hate speech against Jewish people in a 20-minute virtual appearance on Cuomo.
Cuomo caught up with Ye in a video call as the Yeezy designer was riding in a car. When asked if he was on his way to meet with former president Donald Trump, Ye said he was actually going to negotiate with the CEO of Parler — a social media hub generally used by right-wing political thinkers that Ye offered to purchase earlier this week following his suspension from Instagram and Twitter.
“Why would I remain in a place where I’m just tolerated?” he said of his desire to buy Parler. “Why not go to a place where I’m celebrated? I bring a lot of attention to these platforms, to Instagram and Twitter and … they shadow ban you.”
This led into a conversation about the real reason Ye was booted from the two platforms: for posting hostile remarks aimed at the Jewish community, including one in which he said he would go “death con 3 on Jewish people.” In the days leading up to his Cuomo appearance, Ye doubled down on his anti-Semitic comments on Tucker Carlson‘s Fox News Show as well as Drink Champs (the latter show’s host, N.O.R.E, later said he regretted having Ye on as a guest).
On Cuomo, Ye once again asserted his stance by claiming that Jewish people make up a majority of music executives and yield an agenda exercised by taking control of musicians such as himself. “This is not hate speech,” he insisted to Cuomo. “This is the truth. If you say anything out of the line with the agenda, then your career could be over.”
“There’s so many Black musicians signed to Jewish record labels and those Jewish record labels take ownership … of the culture itself,” he added. “It’s like a modern day slavery, and I’m calling it out. That’s what ‘death con 3’ meant. It didn’t mean I wished any harm on my fellow Jewish people.”
Cuomo didn’t let Ye’s comments just stand, especially the musician’s mention of a “Jewish underground media mafia.” “Look, there is no Jewish media, cabal, mafia. That is a figment of either your imagination or a projection of a prejudice,” Cuomo shot back. “You may have had bad business dealings with people — it’s about those people. It’s not about their religion or faith. And I know that you’re intelligent and understand that when you target people because of their faith, other people may do so the same.”
Ye also looped in his former in-laws, saying that his political differences with Kardashian caused their divorce. “My family was torn apart off of my political opinion because of my ex-wife’s attachment to the Clinton administration,” he told an astonished Cuomo, also claiming that former pals John Legend and Chrissy Tiegen are also part of the “left agenda.”
“They were getting my ex-wife to push the vaccination — I didn’t realize how attached [the Kardashians] were to the left agenda when I was there.”
Watch Kanye’s full interview on Cuomo above.
Nicki Minaj isn’t done lashing out at the Recording Academy for moving her hit “Super Freaky Girl” out of the Grammy’s rap category and placing it in a pop one. “The Grammys is having blogs post that Variety article to distract you from the fact that ‘SUPER FREAKY GIRL’ was unfairly moved from the rap category while other poppy rap songs remain in the RAP CATEGORY,” Minaj wrote in an Instagram Story on Tuesday morning (Oct. 18).
“They’re having blogs post that I pulled a ‘stunt’ and that it worked b/c ‘Do We Have a Problem’ is being submitted in rap categories,” she continued about the earlier single that debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in February. “But what does ‘SFG’ have to do with “DWHAP????” In an earlier slide in Tuesday’s Story, Minaj displayed what appeared to be a post from The Shade Room blog chronicling the first time Minaj called out the Grammys for moving the song, noting that “it looks like the stunt may have gotten their attention.”
The post then cited a recent Variety story that reported that Grammy voters who’ve received their ballots “reportedly say that Nicki is in contention in the best rap performance category for another song of hers.” Responding to that Shade Room post, Nicki wrote, “This is gaslighting @ it’s finest & even this post specifically, @theshaderoom is not posting that part of my live. This is done constantly to make ppl look ‘crazy.’”
At press time a spokesperson for the Recording Academy had not returned requests for comment on Minaj’s post.
A third slide found Minaj continuing her rant against the category switch, with the rapper writing, “It was done to decrease my chances of winning awards for ‘Super Freaky Girl.’ It was done to remove me from the category that they don’t want COMPETITION in!!!!!!! They are all scared to death of the success of that song & thought it would be super EASY for them (like it’s been for the last few years) but ‘SFG’ is such a global smash, certain members are AFRAID to keep it in the competition.”
Last week Minaj hit out at the Recording Academy after it was reported that “Super Freaky Girl” — which her team submitted to the Grammy’s rap categories — was moved to a pop one after the Recording Academy’s rap committee overturned the submission, according to a story in The Hollywood Reporter. “That group determined that Minaj’s playful and pop-sounding song sampling Rick James’ 1981 classic ‘Super Freak’ should compete for best pop solo performance instead of rap awards,” THR reported.
It’s worth noting that MC Hammer also sampled Rick James’ “Super Freak” for “U Can’t Touch This,” which won the best rap solo performance Grammy back in 1991.
“Super Freaky Girl” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in August and has spent eight weeks atop Billboard’s hot rap songs chart. Minaj has suggested that the category switch was part of a broader agenda to celebrate rising rap artists over veterans. In 2017, Drake’s “Hotline Bling” took best rap song and best rap/sung collaboration, Minaj pointed out, though even Drake himself admitted it was a pop number.
On the flip side, Minaj said last week that the same rules applied to Latto’s pop-leaning “Big Energy.” “Now, let’s say that ‘Super Freaky Girl’ is a pop song. Let’s just say that, right. What is ‘Big Energy?’ If ‘Super Freaky Girl’ is a pop song, what song is ‘Big Energy.’ What genre is ‘Big Energy?,’” Minaj tweeted.
“If you can’t tell by now that there is a concerted effort to give newer artists things that they really don’t deserve, over people who have been deserving for many years, then you’re not paying attention,” Minaj continued. “And soon female rap will really not have any black women. If you pay attention, you’ll see, you’ll understand.”
The Recording Academy doesn’t reveal reasons when its screening committees relocate tracks into categories other than those that eligible recordings were submitted in, THR noted. The general ballot, which can include thousands of submissions in a single category, isn’t released to the public.
N.O.R.E. spoke out Monday (Oct. 17) about the wave of backlash he’s faced over having Kanye West as a guest on his Revolt TV show Drink Champs.
Speaking to Hot 97’s Pete Rosenberg and Laura Stylez, the rapper explained, “Well the logic was the same way you guys are giving me the platform. I think you guys have love for me, you guys have respect for me, and you guys think that I should have a say. I have a relationship with Ye. When he was going through a lot of the things he was going through, he would call me and he would actually listen to me and take my advice. So I felt I could control the situation. I felt that I could control the interview, and learned early on that I didn’t.”
N.O.R.E. went on to add that “as a Black man, I feel like I failed,” but justified his thought process that “as a journalist,” the controversial interview was considered a success. “Because as a journalist, you’re really not supposed to have an opinion,” he said. “You’re supposed to let people talk. And my biggest critique on Drink Champs is ‘N.O.R.E., you always cut people off!’ And this is the one time I didn’t cut the people, didn’t cut ’em off, and everyone’s mad.”
A bit later, the artist offered a mea culpa for providing his pal with a platform to broadcast what many critics are denouncing as hate speech, saying, “I sincerely apologize to anybody that was hurt by Kanye’s words, by Kanye’s actions.” However, he also claims he called out his longtime friend over his eyebrow-raising statements regarding George Floyd and the Jewish community within minutes of the interview starting.
Watch N.O.R.E.’s full walk-back of his interview with Ye below.
The wait for SZA‘s sophomore album has drawn on for half a decade now, but the singer dished on Monday (Oct. 17) that she’s spent all that time recording a whole lot of music.
At LAX airport, the Grammy winner was approached by TMZ for details about the long-awaited follow-up to 2017’s Ctrl, and she let slip that it’s set to arrive “any day” without giving a specific release date. “I’m hoping it goes well,” she added of the studio set.
As she made her way to the TSA Pre-Check line, the paparazzi following her asked, “How many total songs do you think you’ve recorded?” From beneath her white hoodie and black face mask, she replied, “Total? A hundred, maybe? Like, I don’t even know, actually… Five years worth of material.”
This summer, SZA issued a special deluxe re-release of her smash debut album to celebrate its fifth anniversary. Featuring seven previously unreleased tracks like “Tread Carefully, “2AM,” “Miles,” “Percolator,” “Awkward,” “Jodie” and an alternative version of “Love Galore,” the LP climbed back up Billboard‘s Top R&B Albums chart where it reclaimed the No. 1 spot for the first time since its initial release.
Ctrl was nominated at the 2018 Grammy Awards for best urban contemporary album and she was up for best new artist the same year.
The singer also joined Pharrell, Justin Timberlake, Clipse, Q-Tip and more at the 2022 Something in the Water festival over Juneteenth weekend in Washington, D.C., and more recently took the stage for the 10th iteration of Global Citizen fest all the way from Accra, Ghana, in order to help mark the 65th anniversary of Ghanaian independence as well as the 20th anniversary of the African Union.
It’s been 16 years since Akon unveiled his R&B hit, “Smack That,” and the 49-year-old star shared how Eminem came to be a producer as well as a featured artist on the track.
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While appearing on the Bootleg Kev podcast this week, Akon discussed his past collaborations with the superstar rapper. “It’s interesting because every record I ever put out, I actually produced, except ‘Smack That,’” he explained. “Eminem produced that record. Isn’t that crazy? He always had them small little sounds, it was something minute, but it felt like Eminem.”
Akon went on to admit that he didn’t expect Em to be such a good producer. “He gave me a folder with, like, 30 tracks in there. And out of 30, I picked five. And I recorded all five, and the one that stood out was ‘Smack That.’ I was like, ‘Bro, this is it’,” he recalled.
“Once he heard my concept to it, he was like, ‘Yo, I’m jumping on this one’. And I said, ‘You know what, if he jumps on this one, this will be a single,’” he continued. “And that’s the only one we ever had together, besides all those we did. But I still have them. I literally still have those records today. These are all the records that’s gonna drop in the future.”
“Smack That,” which was featured on Akon’s 2006 album, Konvicted, peaked at No. 2 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 dated November 4, 2006, and spent 30 total weeks on the chart.
Watch the full interview below.
Nicki Minaj‘s frustrations regarding her Grammy genre shuffle have resulted in the latest rap beef.
During an Instagram Live on Thursday, Minaj voiced her concerns over “Super Freaky Girl” being moved from the rap category to pop on the 2023 Grammy ballet, deeming it unfair. Minaj — who despite countless hit singles and albums and 10 nominations over the years has yet to win a Grammy — is not the first artist to raise questions about the Recording Academy’s categorizing methods. In the video, she mentions Drake’s best rap song win with “Hotline Bling” at the 2017 Grammys (a point of contention for the Toronto rapper, who said the song was pop but only categorized as rap because of his race and past music) and Latto’s “Big Energy” being eligible to compete in this year’s rap field.
“If ‘Super Freaky Girl’ is a pop song, what genre is ‘Big Energy?’” Minaj asked.
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Like “Super Freaky Girl,” Latto’s chart-topper was also produced by Dr. Luke and Vaughn Oliver; a live version of “Big Energy” is eligible to compete in the best melodic rap performance category at the 2023 Grammys. (A live version is in contention because the original “Big Energy” was released in September 2021, outside the eligibility period.) “They stay moving the goal post when it comes to me,” Minaj added multiple times.
While Minaj also brought up names like Doja Cat, Post Malone, Harry Styles and Adele, she continued to circle back to Latto, both by name and also in ways that the 23-year-old burgeoning rap star could have perceived as subliminal.
“If you know something is unfair as an artist, speak on that sh–,” Minaj went on. “If you can’t tell by now that there is a concerted effort to give newer artists things they really don’t deserve over people who have been deserving for many years, they you not paying attention.”
Minaj also accused “corporate giants” of elevating “someone they can profit off of” and intentionally moving “Super Freaky Girl” to create less competition for other artists in the rap categories. She even mentioned the future of female rap, adding that the genre will no longer “have any Black women.” The comment can be understood as a dig against Latto, whose mother is white and father is Black. Minaj also went on to say in a tweet that Latto is “wiping that spray tan off & being a Karen,” a term typically reserved for white women.
On Twitter, Minaj echoed the sentiments expressed during her Live about “Super Freaky Girl” and “Big Energy,” even quoting tweets from fans who were drawing the comparison.
This didn’t sit well with Latto, who had been trying to celebrate her AMA nominations (including favorite female hip-hop artist and favorite hip-hop song with “Big Energy”) amidst social media backlash to her BET Hip Hop Awards win, sparked by Kodak Black. “Damn I can’t win for losing…all these awards/noms I can’t even celebrate,” she tweeted.
From there, Latto and Nicki went back and forth exchanging a tirade of jabs, airing out past subliminal digs and insulting family members, with fans egging them on in the replies. Nicki posted a screenshot of a text Latto sent her, and Latto returned the favor by releasing an audio recording of a phone conversation she and the “Super Bass” rapper had. The exchange went on for hours, with other female rappers, including Azealia Banks, Erica Banks and Chika, chiming in. In the end, Minaj deleted all of her tweets to Latto, only leaving behind a video clip of Whitney Houston laughing uncontrollably in a music video.
See some of the Twitter feud below:
With his debut studio album Ivory, Omar Apollo shows listeners exactly who he is.
The previously elusive singer from Indiana leaned into all aspects of his identity throughout the 16-track effort — from raw, genre-defying cuts like “Invincible,” alongside Daniel Caesar, to Spanglish trap banger “Tamagotchi,” which reveals a refreshingly playful Apollo. But it was “Evergreen,” a soulful, R&B-tinged deep cut, that captured the hearts of fans and catapulted Apollo onto the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, through what every artists hopes for in 2022: a viral TikTok moment.
It took a few tries for the bridge to take off, with Apollo’s own trendsetting efforts on the platform with “Evergreen” proving futile. “I remember my day-to-day [manager] showed me a TikTok, and it was the same part that I had already been posting, but someone else did it,” explains Apollo from his sunny Los Angeles home. “And then it started going and going. I didn’t expect that at all.”
An influx of users began posting compilations of a hardship soon after — be it depression, body image issues or heartbreak — followed by their post-struggle glow up, to the track’s climactic bridge. To date, “Evergreen” has soundtracked more than 370,000 TikTok videos, also clocking in at over 65.8 million plays across streaming platforms.
It’s proof that the 25-year-old singer’s vulnerability paid off, showing that the longtime alt artist with a cult following is fully equipped for a mainstream breakthrough. The sonically cohesive Ivory‘s popularity on the charts prove as much: after debuting atop Billboard‘s Heatseekers Albums chart in April, it returns to No. 1 for a third week on the chart dated Oct. 15. (“Evergreen” also reaches a new No. 51 high on the Hot 100 this week, after debuting on the Oct. 1-dated chart.)
Below, Omar tells Billboard about the making of “Evergreen,” leaning into his cultural identity, what pushed him to get active on TikTok and more.
What were your intentions while making Ivory?
I knew that it was definitely gonna be something that I put all my effort into. I knew I was going to be proud of it. In terms of how it was received, honestly, I wasn’t really sure. But when I was done, I knew I gave it all that I had. That made me [secure] about what happened after.
The project wasn’t heavy on features, but the two you had, Kali Uchis and Daniel Caesar, fit so beautifully. Tell me a bit about “Invincible.”
That song has a special place with me because the structure is really weird. That’s why I really loved it. [Daniel] told me come to the studio, so I pulled up and started playing a guitar riff. And then we made an eight-minute demo of “Invincible” and it had all the parts in it, but they weren’t structured. Then three or four months later, I opened it back up, added drums, restructured it and sent it to him.
“Tamagotchi” is a Tyler, the Creator-approved hit. It also felt like the song more likely to go viral on TikTok — but it ended up being “Evergreen.” Did you expect that?
When I wrote it, definitely not. It was kind of like a post-rationalize thing. I was like, I”‘m on TikTok all the time. I feel like this would be something that would work.” I tried to make a few TikToks and they didn’t really go up. I was like, “I guess I was wrong, whatever.” Then I remember my day-to-day [manager] Jake showed me a TikTok, and it was the same part that I had already been posting, but someone else did it. And then it started going and going. I didn’t expect that at all.
Tell us about the process of writing “Evergreen.”
I rented a house in Idyllwild [Calif.] to make music with my engineer and my childhood best friend [Manuel Barajas] who plays bass in my band. It felt like how I [made] music in the beginning. I made “Evergreen” and “Endlessly” in the same day. It was so simple. Being far away from everybody, not having access to do things, things become clear.
[For] the part people use on TikTok, I had another song called “How Do You Live in Your Skin” — I was like, “I’ll take [those lyrics] and put [them] on my bridge.” Then I brought in my friend Tao Halm, we got a studio a couple months later — Larrabee Studios — and we hired a band. We focused on [the bridge] so much. There are so many textures — if you listen to background vocals, even Teo [Halm, producer] is singing on that part. It’s beautiful to see that all the effort I put in with Teo, Manny and my engineer Nathan [Phillips] is the part that’s blowing up. That literally makes me so happy.
When you earned your first Hot 100 entry, you tweeted out, “my first hot 100 entry, b–ch. Wow.”
[Laughs.] You already know that was a real reaction in real time, as soon as I got the news.
How did you find out about it?
Like four texts from my manager Jake, my A&R, everyone. I was with Manny. I’ve known him since I was 11. This is like my brother. He’s the one that wrote the chords on the bridge. He’s the one that told me “Evergreen” should have a bridge, and I don’t really do bridges. It was just so crazy being with him. It’s very surreal. It’s bizarre, the feeling of, “Oh, my God. I did this.” I worked with a lot of great people in my life, but it really mattered for my career when I did it with my best friend. That’s why it was so cool.
Before Ivory, you had a pretty low public profile, but it seems that has changed. What inspired you to be more active on socials?
These damn numbers got me over here making TikTok videos! Before the pandemic, I was just touring, I wouldn’t really be on the internet like that. I was like, “I want to make music, I don’t want to be on the internet.” And then it just started popping off. I’m like, “Let me let me get these TikToks together. What we doing? What’s the vibe today?”
Your Twitter followers are loving it.
Literally, please don’t ever take anything I say on my Twitter seriously. [Laughs.] My Twitter is a place for empty thoughts. There’s no there’s no backbone to the thought.
Did you ever consider that singing in Spanish would impede your mainstream growth?
When I was very young, I think so. I thought that people weren’t gonna take me seriously because I didn’t see any Mexican artists that were buzzing at the time [in the mainstream]. I also wasn’t around the music industry, I was in Indiana. And now it’s funny because it’s like, oh, “first-generation Mexican artist!” It’s like, “Well, I was wrong.”
Now, it’s clear you’re leaning into your cultural identity more. In your recent NPR Tiny Desk Concert, you had a mariachi of all women. What has inspired you to make the change?
I started off [making] traditional Mexican music. That’s how I started dancing — I was in ballet folklórico, which is like Mexican folk ballet. My culture was traditional Mexican, Juan Gabriel type of thing. You grew up on that, you take it for granted. And I lived in Indiana, so I really fell in love with R&B music: Aretha Franklin, Lauryn Hill, Sly and the Family Stone, Bootsy Collins. As I got older, I found a new love for the corridos. It was healing for me. Especially that all my songs are about longing, that’s what all that music is about. And I wanted to start the Tiny Desk like that because I love the Mariachi Lindas Mexicanas — I literally hired them to sing at my brother’s birthday. That is something you’re definitely going to hear [more] in the future. It just feels like home.
A version of this story originally appeared in the Oct. 8, 2022, issue of Billboard.
GloRilla and Cardi B are back in the studio, but this time, to show off some major gifts the “F.N.F.” MC gave the “Hot Shit” rapper.
The Bronx native uploaded a video to Instagram on Thursday (Oct. 14) of herself and GloRilla, ecstatic at what her fellow artist just gifted her. (Cardi celebrated her big 30th birthday on Oct. 11.)
“So I’m in the studio with GloRilla, and she … I don’t even got no words to say, like …,” Cardi gushes breathlessly in the clip. “OK, so, look. She gave me some Van Cleef earrings, but she also gave me a f–king Patek, bro! Like, what the f–k! Like nobody ever does something so beautiful like that but my man! Now you’re my woman! If that’s my man, you’re woman!”
“I love you, cousin,” GloRilla says while hugging her pal.
The following slide is a photo of the luxury items: Van Cleef & Arpels earrings that look to be the $2,450 Sweet Alhambra gold and onyx studs, and a Patek Philippe watch that appears to be the $21,050 5267/200A Aquanaut. The timepiece features blackened gold numerals and 48 diamonds that add up to about 1.11 carats. (Cardi also received a rare Richard Mille watch for her birthday from husband Offset.)
“Y’all, look what @glorillapimp just gave me !!!!! I love her for f– ever …I wanna cry but imma Gangsta!!!!” Cardi B captioned the post.
The artists are in high spirits in the video for a good reason. GlorRilla’s “Tomorrow 2” remix featuring Cardi B debuted at No. 3 on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart on Thursday (Oct.6). The rappers’ team-up also arrived at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Check out Cardi B’s post below:
The signing marks a new beginning for the emerging artist (real name Kevin Brown) who has a knack for blending elements of R&B, funk and house. In 2019, he released his debut EP Iridescent Luv, captivating the underground indie music scene with help from singer-songwriter James Tillman. Flwr Chyld then followed with 2020’s Flow, collaborating with other rising names including Elujay and Mia Gladstone.
“I’m excited to be a part of this niche market,” Brown told Billboard about the signing. “Things have been evolving and I’m able to feel new energies and have new conversations. It’s definitely the right place and the right timing!”
The publishing deal is also a full-circle moment for the artist who connected with Xtina Prince, Raedio’s general manager of label and publishing, prior to her joining the company. Deemed as a “perfect fit” for Raedio, Prince says she’s excited to support Flwr Chyld while allowing him to maintain creative control of his upcoming releases.
“Flwr Chyld is special. From the moment I heard his music, I knew I had to find a way to support him,” said Prince. “Giving independent artists opportunities to advance on their own terms has always been at the forefront of my passion in the music business. To be able to offer this opportunity to such an incredible talent, is the reason I do this everyday.”
Issa Rae founded Raedio in October 2019 as “an audio everywhere company.” The record label is a joint venture with Atlantic Records and includes four branches dedicated to publishing, live events, music supervision and discography. Back in January, the producer-writer-director also launched the Raedio Creators Program Supported by Google which was designed to provide resources to underrepresented indie artists and bring more representation of women of color to the music industry.
Flwr Chyld describes his Luv N Chaos as “a story that tells multiple perspectives on what it means to fall in and out love.” Ahead of its release, the artist dropped four singles: “Worth It” feat. Flozigg, “Lucky Me” feat. Sebastian Mikael, “In Your Arms” feat. Demae, and “Feel Your Love.”
“We’ve all gone through relationships with significant others where we were either eager for it to end or wished it never ended,” he explained. “You know, for better or for worse! No matter how chaotic the feeling, the emotion that love can make us feel all seems to be worth it in the end.”
