Chris Patrick is a budding rapper from New Jersey. The artist has been touring with Russ this year, serving as the opener on the “It Was You All Along” tour. It appears that he has also signed with Def Jam as well. His latest single, “Mr. Fantastic,” was released under the legendary label. Def Jam has been undergoing a transformation in recent years. Many of the artists they signed in the early 2010s recently fulfilled their contractual obligations, including Logic and Vince Staples, who exited in 2022 and 2024, respectively. Patrick, who’s in his 20s, seems to be part of another youth movement for the label.
“Mr. Fantastic” is a strong single for Chris Patrick to make his Def Jam presence felt with. The beat is catchy and 808-heavy, but it has a light feel to it that’s reminiscent of a Smino track. Delivery wise, Patrick is similar to someone like Isaiah Rashad, with a laid-back flow that will cause you to miss a few words if you’re not paying close attention. He talks about traveling with a girl and “stretching her out like he’s Mr. Fantastic,” which is a witty line. Patrick also teased the track online for weeks and suggested that it would be out while he was on tour with Russ. It’s a smooth listen by an artist building some buzz for himself online. Check out “Mr. Fantastic” below, and take a listen to his mixtape THE CALM from earlier this year if you want to hear more of him.
Now we on late night creep Two in a Mustang, drive with the top down, shawty a major freak She wanna Smackdown raw, good thing I’m Dave Bautista Beatin’ it up like production for Swizz, she sing like Alicia
While a lot of the ongoing celebrations of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop have focused on where hip-hop has been, it doesn’t make much sense to focus only on the past. No Hip-Hop 50 celebration should be considered complete without taking a look at where hip-hop is going.
As The Notorious B.I.G. once pointed out, no one could have seen where rap music and hip-hop culture would have ended up at the outset, but in the same vein, even he couldn’t have seen how things would turn out 30 years after he recorded “Juicy.”
That makes it a fun and unique challenge – it’s impossible to predict where hip-hop could be in another five years, let alone fifty. Still, if these young rising stars have anything to say about it, the genre should be in great hands.
Here are 10 rising rappers who have the potential to dictate what hip-hop could look like in the future.
Cash Cobain
Rap fans have often been ambivalent about embracing the avant garde. For every Young Thug who blows up, there are a dozen rappers with squeaky or slurred voices who never gain traction among hip-hop heads, who can be as fickle as they are loyal. But when they do decide that they love a new artist with an original ken, they can be as devoted as they once were skeptical.
Cash Cobain is one of those artists who has a chance to go either way. The self-declared “sample God” of New York drill, the Queens native has a flow that is slippery in ways we haven’t heard from trap rappers who have earned the same descriptor. His unabashed pillaging of millennial R&B hits certainly makes him more likely to earn fans than foes, and even if he never hits it big in the traditional sense, his style is guaranteed to influence someone who does.
Central Cee
As much as stateside rap heads have held the UK’s grime and drill artists at an arm’s length in the past, that reticence to embrace hip-hop’s extended family from across the pond has slowly eroded in recent years. Part of this may be due to the clever backdoor those cousins have utilized; drill production, which originated in London’s underground rave scene, is now a familiar fixture on the streets of New York.
Be that as it may, Central Cee doesn’t water down or hide his Shepherd’s Bush, London origins or influences. And while he hasn’t crossed over to US radio, those in the know have accepted him as the future of the British rap regime. It helps that he’s closely associated with a prior favorite in Dave, with whom he collaborated on an EP, Split Decision, earlier this year. It was well received, with its single “Sprinter” peaking at No. 1 on the UK charts. And just in case there was any doubt about his viability with a Yankee audience, he’s got that coveted Drake co-sign via his “On The Radar” featuring The Boy himself.
Chris Patrick
An indie rapper who doesn’t sound like an indie rapper, East Orange, New Jersey’s Chris Patrick has gained a small but extremely vocal following blending the sort of cerebral rhymes commonly associated with artists on the independent scene with thumping, anthemic beats that wouldn’t sound out-of-place in a crowded club or blasting out of car stereos on a sweltering summer day.
Patrick’s 2022 album X-Files is much like its namesake; it started out a cult favorite, but now, a wider audience is curious to see what all the fuss is about. Patrick’s next project will undoubtedly have a larger impact, proving that there are more directions that independent rappers can still go.
Flyana Boss
In Uproxx’s profile of the viral sensation rap duo, group member Bobbi LaNea asserted that they are “paying tribute to what hip-hop truly is.” Their clever use of nursery rhymes in their lyrics harkens back to Run-DMC’s use of the old “Peter Piper” tongue twister, and Flyana’s back-and-forth flow recalls the intricate routines employed by classic pioneers like the Furious Five and Beastie Boys.
Though Flyana Boss burst onto our timelines with the splashy social smash “Miss Me,” they are no one-hit wonders. They have a solid discography that proves that the well of ideas runs deep – but past that, their lasting legacy will be kicking open the door for future “weird Black girls” to express themselves through hip-hop in unconventional ways. Whether that’s wearing elf ears, name-checking Kanekalon, or just being willing to cause a commotion in the local convenience store, there’s value in what they’ve already done.
Kenny Mason
Rap and rock go hand-in-hand. From “Walk This Way” to Collision Course, the shared rebellious spirit of the two in-your-face genres has made magic throughout the past five decades. And sure, there have been some missteps – nu-metal, anyone? – but in recent years, the covalent bond between rap and rock has generated some truly compelling combinations courtesy of acts like Rico Nasty and Trippie Redd.
Kenny Mason’s music, on the surface, seems to stem from that tradition, but shot through with an undercurrent of indie sleaze – the sort of shoegaze-y, fuzzed-out rock that took over pop culture throughout the late aughts. Mason is equally comfortable collaborating with festival rap faves like Denzel Curry and JID as he is imbuing his output with the alt-rock vibes of My Bloody Valentine and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
LaRussell
There’s been a lot of talk lately about how crowded and repetitive festival lineups have gotten. With so many events in the space and only so many rappers around with the sorts of followings that justify their placement, it stands to reason that a lot of the same names have been popping up on many different rosters.
LaRussell, who hails from Vallejo (just like fellow indie rap pioneer E-40), could easily be a standout of one of those lineups. Instead, he’s more likely to pull up in your neighbor’s backyard to play a show for a few dozen folks at a time. His backyard tour concept is just one of the innovative spins he’s putting on the independent rap hustle. He’s kept up a steady stream of self-released projects and singles, punctuated by semi-regular appearances on your favorite radio freestyle shows. He’s perking up a lot of eyes and ears, proving that there are alternatives to same-old-same.
Lady London
If you’ve ever found yourself complaining about the prevalence of so-called “pussy rap” among today’s flourishing cadre of female rappers… Well, first of all, stick a sock in it. That complaint’s old, dusty, dried-up, and overdone, in addition to being terminally untrue. Today’s buffet of talents offers such a wide range of voices and styles that whining about a bare handful of modern rap artists – especially when they’re nothing compared to some of the genre’s pioneers – is a waste of your own time, in addition to being pretty annoying to everybody else.
But, it also makes it obvious that you haven’t been looking for alternatives like Lady London, who has recently received co-signs from the likes of Ciara, who tapped her for the remix of “Da Girls” with Lola Brooke. She’s exactly the sort of lyrics-focused MC that critics of female rappers say they want, and she’s only getting more popular by the day. She’s the proof that there are plenty of bars-first women in rap, and she’s kicking open the door for more to follow.
Luh Tyler
He’s been called the coolest teen in hip-hop, but Tyler’s success portends something larger. For years, hip-hop was all about cool; rappers exaggerated their fashion sensibilities, material possessions, and successes with the opposite sex first and foremost. Somewhere along the way, it became more important to have a good story; “keeping it real” was paramount, but only so long as “keeping it real” meant “keeping it gangsta” or baring some gut-wrenching trauma.
Luh Tyler is too busy talking to girls and telling you about his income for all that. And while that’s not exactly new, the way he does it, with laid-back panache and subtly clever lyricism, is refreshing. He doesn’t try to impress you, so he does. With that as his calling card, he’s helping swing the pendulum back the other way. Think of him as a Larry June for the zoomer set.
Ray Vaughn
For a decade, Top Dawg Entertainment felt like the premier hip-hop label thanks to its core artists, which included Ab-Soul, Jay Rock, Schoolboy Q, and of course, Kendrick Lamar. But lately, that core has been less visible than ever as it feels a little bit like Jay and Q have lost interest in music and Kendrick has moved on from the label. Sure, the remaining members are still working on new music, but it’s been a long time coming, and the label could use some fresh blood to energize the buzz around itself.
Enter Long Beach’s Ray Vaughn, who brings a level of passion and hunger to the same sort of street-centric, philosophical music the original TDE roster was known for. But while they were enamored of lo-fi, moody production that highlighted the heady material, Vaughn emphasizes energetic street bangers – exactly the sort of sounds needed to revitalize and anchor TDE as it enters its new era with a fresh cast including Doechii, Zacari, and Reason.
Yes, “FreakyT,” the breakout single from North Carolina rapper TiaCorine, is representative of the Winston-Salem native’s talents. But that’s not all she has to offer. Thanks to a colorful presentation – like a lot of today’s young talents, she counts anime as foundational to her artistic identity – she’s got an eye-catching style that makes her impossible to overlook. But past that, she’s got a wide variety of approaches, as demonstrated on her 2022 mixtape I Can’t Wait.
The diversity of style she embraces is very emblematic of her generation. From the video game-glitch-hop to pop rock to dreamy pop, she’s willing to try anything – and she sounds great doing it. There will soon be more artists like TiaCorine than not, as hip-hop kids continue to embrace the breadth of popular culture and weird internet movements, incorporating them into rap standards and transforming both sides of the equation.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
New Jersey rapper Chris Patrick may have a relatively unassuming nom de plume, but when he steps to the mic to perform his song “Up Now” for the latest episode of UPROXX Sessions, his star power becomes evident. Coolly switching from punchy, rapid-fire rhymes to crystal-clear crooning, he proves to be proficient at both rapping and singing, all while showing off quick-witted wordplay revealing a quirky worldview that complements his deceptive rap name.
“Sunroof down so the rays hit the melanin,” he smirks. “Spun through town tryna bathe in the element.”
Patrick might be flying under the radar now, but with co-signs from the likes of Black Thought and JID, the lanky East Orange MC’s time in the sun might not be metaphorical for very much longer (well, yeah, it still will be but it’ll mean something different). His 2020 album, From The Heart, Vol. 2 has drawn comparisons to early efforts from relatable rap everymen such as J. Cole and Saba, which bodes well for his earnest, down-to-earth approach. Working with Deante Hitchcock on Deante’s new EP and building his buzz with tracks like “Up Now” and “Gang Activity,” expect to see Chris Patrick to not only elevate to radar level but fly high as his career takes off in 2022.
Watch Chris Patrick perform “Up Now” above.
UPROXX Sessions is Uproxx’s performance show featuring the hottest up-and-coming acts you should keep an eye on. Featuring creative direction from LA promotion collective, Ham On Everything, and taking place on our “bathroom” set designed and painted by Julian Gross, UPROXX Sessions is a showcase of some of our favorite performers, who just might soon be yours, too.
