Coi Leray

Coi Leray Wants To Prove She Can Do Everything On ‘Trendsetter’

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coi-leray-trendsetter-review
Uptown Records

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For the past year and a half, New Jersey rapper Coi Leray has faced scrutiny. After her 2020 song “No More Parties” became a staple of both playlists and radio, rap fans wondered where she came from. That scrutiny intensified when she was selected as one of XXL’s 11 Freshmen for 2021. Some of the skepticism was warranted; some wasn’t. While fans’ attention focused on Coi’s physique and colorful, unique bearing, her performances on both the moody, melodic “No More Parties” and her unusual XXL Freshman freestyle left many fans questioning what was once the only thing that mattered in hip-hop: “Can she really even rap?”

On her debut album, Trendsetter, she doesn’t exactly look to put that speculation to rest. Instead of proving that she can rap, she focuses on proving that she can do nearly everything else. Across the album’s 20 tracks, which include the “No More Parties” remix featuring Lil Durk as well as follow-up hits like “Twinnem” and “Blick Blick” with Nicki Minaj, she admirably accomplishes this mission. An expression of her exuberant personality and her eclecticism, Trendsetter should show that Coi Leray isn’t just a fly-by-night one-hit-wonder.

It’s hard to blame rap fans for their skepticism — and their ignorance. After all, Coi, who’d been releasing mixtapes since 2018, seemingly popped up out of nowhere with the success of “No More Parties.” Rap fans are often skeptical of overnight success stories, especially when they seem to be beneficiaries of industry nepotism. You see, Coi’s father is Boston impresario Benzino, former co-owner of The Source magazine, who used to rap in groups like the Almighty RSO and Made Men before joining the cast of Love & Hip-Hop: Atlanta. While Coi’s had viral hits like “Huddy” in 2018, the first time many folks ever heard of her was on “No More Parties.”

Coi already demonstrated a solid grasp of different deliveries on her mixtapes Everythingcoz and EC2. Still, Trendsetter in many ways represents her first opportunity to prove naysayers wrong. To that end, she shows her bite on tricks like “Thief In The Night” with G Herbo and “Box & Papers,” on which she directly addresses the attention she’s received lately. “They be like / How you do that there?’ / They ask me, ‘Baby, how you so viral? I see you everywhere,’” she snaps with the pointed delivery of someone fed up with the ongoing inquisition.

She also displays surprising vulnerability on songs like “Anxiety,” “Clingy,” and “Paranoid.” Diagnosed with ADHD, she’s open about her struggles with mental health. These more introspective songs are marked shifts in tone away from the seemingly upbeat singles she’s released so far, but scratch the surface, and it’s clear that she’s been speaking these truths all along. “Anxiety” is a microcosm; couching serious subject matter in bubbly production can sometimes obscure the content. But with Trendsetter‘s more therapeutic tracks, Coi makes the subjects plain — which, in turn, makes it harder to criticize her for being a surface-level mumble rapper, as she has been.

She even dabbles in Afrobeats on “Aye Yai Yai,” an endeavor that comes early enough on the project to throw listeners who only know her from her more effervescent songs. Whether this is a good thing or not depends on your point of view. However, I think I agree with Nicki Minaj, who both praised and critiqued her host’s album. The sequencing is the album’s weak point, as is its length and sometimes scattershot approach. But that’s a minor quibble and when Coi inevitably figures out how to present her ideas more cohesively, whether that means sharper edits or more focused storytelling, she’s shown she has the versatility to manage it.

Trendsetter is out now on Uptown Records. Get it here.

Nicki Minaj Has Some Thoughts For Coi Leray On How Her New Album ‘Trendsetter’ Could Have Been Better

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Nicki Minaj 2018 Harper's Bazaar Icons
Getty Image / Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan

This past Friday, Coi Leray released her debut album, Trendsetter. It sees the Jersey rapper establishing herself as a force to be reckoned with from here on out and features a decorated list of guest features. Some highlights include Yung Bleu joining Leray on “Aye Yai Yai,” HER hopping on the sultry “Overthinking,” Polo G on “Paranoid,” Lil Durk jumping on the remix version of “No More Parties,” and Nicki Minaj gracing the feisty “Blick Blick.” But Minaj, who is never shy to share her opinion, shared some thoughts on what Leray could have done differently to make Trendsetter even better.

“No More Parties is too classic for y’all to leave the original off,” she began in a tweet. “It should’ve started the whole album.” Which is a fair take, considering the original version of “No More Parties” launched Leray onto the trajectory that she’s on now.

The album is 20 tracks long, and Minaj also expressed which tracks that she feels should have appeared higher in the album’s sequencing because Leray was so good on them. “Twinnem,” is the ninth track on Trendsetter and Minaj thinks it should have appeared earlier. Considering it was a single, we can see where her mind is. In her list of songs, she also lists “Aye Yai Yai,” the album’s third track, so it’s hard to think how that could have been higher up. Regardless, this wasn’t shade from Minaj, as much as she’s looking out for her girl. And Leray took it in stride with her response to the tweet, saying “Ohhhhhhhhhhhh YA SELECTS IS FIREEEEEEEEEEE.”

The Most Anticipated Hip-Hop Albums Of Spring 2022

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The Most Anticipated Hip-Hop Albums Of Spring 2022
Getty Image/Ralph Ordaz

What a year in hip-hop 2022 has already been. This year started with a bang thanks to new album releases from Gunna (DS4EVER), Cordae (From A Bird’s Eye View), and Earl Sweatshirt (Sick!). As the year continued, the big-name releases picked up momentum, with new albums from Saba (Few Good Things), 2 Chainz (Dope Don’t Sell Itself), $not (Ethereal), Big KRIT (Digital Roses Don’t Die), Earthgang (Ghetto Gods), and Conway The Machine (God Don’t Make Mistakes). That momentum has carried over into the beginning of spring, with King Von (What It Means To Be King), BabyTron (Megatron), Lil Durk (7220), Fly Anakin (Frank), Phife Dawg (Forever), Denzel Curry (Melt My Eyez, See Your Future), Buddy (Superghetto), and Latto (777) all contributing to the absolute mayhem that marked the first quarter of rap releases.

All that, and we still haven’t heard from heavy-hitters like JID, Kendrick Lamar, or Nicki Minaj, although increased activity from two of the three suggests that new albums may very well be dropping soon. For now, we’ll just focus on the albums we know are dropping (or have dropped — April 8 turned out to be a monster release day as well). And look, there’s no accounting for taste or surprise releases; your underground fave may not appear here but that doesn’t mean we aren’t always looking out to be pleasantly shocked by a relative newcomer or dark horse viral popup. Here are the most anticipated hip-hop albums of spring 2020.

Coi Leray — Trendsetter

The 2021 XXL Freshman had a stellar year in the wake of her breakout track, “No More Parties.” Following up with strong viral faves like “Twinnem” and “Blick Blick,” Coi proved she’s no one-hit-wonder. Trendsetter looks to bring some color and life to the rap game, bending the genre’s established tropes and throwing expectations for female rappers completely out the window.

Dreezy & Hit-Boy — Hit Girl

As the Chicago veteran — yes, she’s a vet, as she first emerged during the drill rap explosion of 2012 — aims to make her resurgence, she’s picked the perfect partner. Hit-Boy managed to jumpstart the career of rap icon Nas; if anyone can help Dreezy with her relaunch, it’s him. They’ve already made significant headway to that effect with the slick comeback singles “COVID Flow Freestyle” and “They Not Ready,” and honestly, no one could be happier about this than me.

Fivio Foreign — B.I.B.L.E.

When Pop Smoke was killed in 2020, the torch of the oncoming New York drill wave, seemingly passed to Fivio — Pop’s closest collaborator — by default. At times, it seemed uncertain whether he was ready for it, or whether he even wanted it. Yet, in the year and change since, we’ve seen Fivio take some laudable leaps as an artist. His notoriety has certainly increased as well, resulting in collaborations with big names like Kanye West and Nicki Minaj. If nothing else, it’ll be interesting to see what he does with it and whether he can blow some fresh wind into the movement’s flagging sails on B.I.B.L.E.

Jack Harlow — Come Home The Kids Miss You

Harlow’s new album’s title may be a mouthful, but the cocky Louisvillain has certainly earned some latitude to take a few left turns. Just check out “Nail Tech” and “First Class,” which have been stark departures from the upbeat, syllable-a-second breakout single “What’s Poppin’.” Jack promises more introspective material on his latest, but as it turns out, he’s not above relishing in his newfound success either.

Leikeli47 — Shape Up

Listen, the time is certainly ripe for the masked menace to make her long-awaited return. It has been nearly four years since her last album, Acrylic, and to be honest, the rap game has desperately needed a jolt of her fresh perspectives on New York City’s eclectic musical melange of styles and scenes. An MC’s MC, Leikeli has never been afraid to take big risks musically and who knows — maybe this time, the world will actually be ready for them.

Mount Westmore — TBA

The California supergroup consisting of E-40, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, and Too Short couldn’t have come together at a better time. All four rappers are independent and all four have been around the block a few times since they all emerged in the late-80s/early-90s. They’ve got the experience and wisdom of age, but also share a youthful enthusiasm for hip-hop and rap, and from the two singles they’ve released so far, they clearly enjoy working together and inspire each other in a way that has them all sounding more engaged than ever.

Pusha T — It’s Almost Dry

Once again, it’s time to see how many ways Pusha can make the same material sound brand new all over again. If anyone’s up to the challenge, it’s the guy who managed to sneak a cocaine reference into a fast-food jingle and unearthed a near-decade-old beat from 88 Keys’ stores. He even got Jay-Z to rap like he means it again. Push’s last effort, 2018’s Daytona, was universally acclaimed; could it be he has another consensus critical favorite up his sleeve?

Vince Staples — Ramona Park Broke My Heart

In all his years in the rap game, the Long Beach rapper has been a contrarian, an iconoclast, and someone who was singularly disinterested in the trappings of fame, let alone being a working musician aspiring to it. For the first time, it seems like he’s letting his guard down, demystifying his biography, and actually making music for the masses to enjoy. When Earl Sweatshirt did it, we got Sick! When Vince does it, we just might get another masterpiece.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Nicki Minaj Praised Fivio Foreign’s Debut Album ‘B.I.B.L.E.’: ‘Hittin’ The Mthafkn Spot’

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There’s nothing Nicki Minaj is if not loyal. After recently collaborating with Fivio Foreign on “We Go Up” — and even stepping out to help celebrate his birthday — now the queen of rap is listening to his album on repeat this weekend. She took time out of her day to praise the album on Instagram, letting Fivio and several of his collaborators know that she’s a fan.

“This Fivio Foreign album rlly hittin the mthafkn spot,” she wrote in an Instagram story on Saturday. “Sooooo SOLID. Sonically authentic and well thought out. Cohesive body of work with a signature sound that is very true to where he’s from.” Then, she preceded to hashtag which songs were her favorites and call out some features she liked. Nicki’s picks from the record are “For Nothin,” “Changed On Me,” “On God,” and “Hello.” She thinks “KayCyy is [flame emoji] on both of his songs. Chloe bodied her verse. Loved Coi too.”

Nicki Minaj Instagram Story Fivio Foreign
Instagram

This might be the first some more casual listeners have heard that Chloe dropped more than one song on Friday. Of course, “Treat Me” was unmissable and is already making waves, but her appearance on “Hello” is something fans can check out above if they’re interested.