Lakeyah

Rolling Loud New York 2021 – Playboi Carti & Uzi Reunite and More

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It went down at Rolling Loud New York 2021. Continue reading…

NLE Choppa Shouts Out The Female Artists He Thinks ‘Got Next,’ Including Coi Leray And Flo Milli

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It’s no secret that hip-hop music is going through a nearly unprecedented boom in female artists dominating the charts. There are more female rappers charting on the Hot 100 than ever, and more women in hip-hop are receiving more attention. The 2021 XXL Freshman class included no fewer than three new women on it, including Coi Leray, Lakeyah, and Rubi Rose, and the days of label or fan-imposed, Highlander-style rap beef (“there can only be one!”) among them appear to be over.

While there are obviously some men in the game unhappy about this shift in the status quo, there are others who are ready and willing to champion the next generation. Among the latter is Memphis rising star NLE Choppa, who used his Twitter to highlight some of those who are currently taking over or poised to blow up in the near future. He even went out of his way to tag them all in the thread to ensure they got maximum exposure, listing the above-mentioned Coi, Lakeyah, and Rubi, as well as BIA, DreamDoll, Dreezy, Erica Banks, and Renni Rucci. Later on, he added a couple of names he forgot, Flo Milli and Rico Nasty, noting he’s got a song with the latter.

Of course, because it’s Twitter, fans were quick to chime in and insist that he forgot other rising stars like Armani Caesar, KenTheMan, and Latto, but there’s no pleasing everybody — and, to be fair, there are a lot more female rappers getting attention these days. If a few get missed in one or two Twitter threads, they’ll likely still receive big love from fans, which should be the goal at the end of the day, right?

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

Lupe Fiasco’s ‘Kick, Push’ Prompts Belly, Lakeyah, And Other Young Rappers To Consider Skateboarding

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Back in 2006 when Chicago native Lupe Fiasco released the lead single “Kick, Push” from his debut album, Food And Liquor, there weren’t many high-profile Black skateboarders. In fact, Black kids who skated — especially in the hood — were subject to ridicule and outsider status for engaging in an activity that was long held as the domain of beach-blond surf rats in Venice Beach. But Lupe was part of a vanguard of Black artists who changed that, providing representation for those outsiders and throwing open the doors of possibility for generations after.

Many of Uproxx’s panel of React Like You Know artists are part of those younger generations. For instance, Almighty Suspect thinks it “helped a lot,” while Foushee calls the song “very important to build the foundation” for young, Black skaters. However, that doesn’t mean that it made skaters of the whole hood overnight. Our newest panel members, Belly and Lakeyah, both point out their very good reasons for refusing to try it out. Lakeyah says, “The closest I ever got was a hoverboard… I have no balance.” Meanwhile, Belly reminds us that “I’ve always been big-boned my whole life — I feel like that’s a bad combination.”

Things get deep when our panel is asked about choosing between love and their careers, inspired by Lupe’s second verse boy-meets-girl narrative. Newcomer Jazz Cartier points out that “you can have room for love, opposed to half-assing it.” Meanwhile, the fashions of the video captivate Travis Thompson and Godson; Travis says “Nike SBs were everything,” while Godson marvels at Lupe’s Bathing Ape hoodie.

Watch our panel of guest rappers react to Lupe Fiasco’s “Kick, Push” video above.

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

Lakeyah Delivers An Aggressive ‘Check’ Performance On ‘UPROXX Sessions’

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Milwaukee-bred Quality Control Music member Lakeyah brings a ruthless rendition of her cutthroat song “Check” to UPROXX Sessions just days after dropping her latest full-length project, My Turn, with DJ Drama. It’s not every day a rising artist like Lakeyah can secure Drama’s assistance on a Gangsta Grillz-branded album/mixtape, which should be all the proof you need that this XXL Freshman is the real deal.

In an interview with Uproxx earlier this year, Lakeyah explained the “time” motif of her three releases: “I feel like success — slow success — builds character,” she said. “Everything is going to happen at the perfect time for me… I just feel like everything is going to fall into place. I’m just working my ass off right now being super consistent. It’s all about timing. You don’t want to burn yourself out, out here.”

Watch Lakeyah’s UPROXX Sessions performance of “Check” 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.

Lakeyah’s ‘Reason’ Video Details The Creation Of Her Gangsta Grillz Mixtape, ‘My Time’

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In 2020, Milwaukee-born, new Quality Control Music product Lakeyah said Time’s Up. Then, this spring, she promised In Due Time. Today, she’s back with another full-length project, declaring it My Time and bringing along DJ Drama to make it a Gangsta Grillz affair (thank you, Tyler, for reminding us about these mixtapes and giving Drama a reason to start doing them again). After kicking off the tape’s promotion with “313-414” featuring Detroit rapper Tee Grizzley, she keeps the ball rolling with a video for “Reason,” showing the grind she’s been on for the past year in stark black and white.

In addition to making a name for herself over the past year with standout appearances in City Girls’ “Female Goat” video and her own catchy single “Young & Ratchet,” Lakeyah’s profile skyrocketed when she was selected for the 2021 XXL Freshman Class. And while fans may not have realized the body of work behind her upon the initial announcement, her impressive cypher verse ensured their ears perked up and they were paying attention. Now, with the QC cosign and a whole Gangsta Grillz mixtape under her belt, it’s only a matter of time until she’s being mentioned among the top names in hip-hop.

Watch Lakeyah’s “Reason” video above.

My Time (Gangsta Grillz: Special Edition) is out now via Quality Control Music. Get it here.

Best Hip-Hop Projects of 2021 So Far

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Tyler, The Creator, J. Cole, Polo G, Rod Wave and more of the game’s revered rap stars make the cut. Continue reading…

Coi Leray, DDG, Lakeyah, And Morray Kick Off The 2021 ‘XXL’ Freshman Cypher

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Coi Leray, DDG, Lakeyah, and Morray kick off the 2021 XXL Freshman Cyphers for this year’s class, each bringing their own unique style to a beat produced by algorithm master Nick Mira. DDG opens proceedings with a typical West Coast/Michigan swing flow, then cedes the floor to Lakeyah, who undoubtedly delivers the best straight-up rap verse, hunting for the sort of credit that only comes from being an expert technician. Morray splits the balance between his signature crooning and some off-the-dome rhymes bigging up his cohorts.

That leaves Coi Leray, who is quite possibly the most controversial addition to this year’s list. Despite having three years of tried-and-true material including a handful of viral hits to her name, it was her song “No More Parties” that first exposed her to the wider mainstream audience, drawing comparisons to both Dej Loaf and Playboi Carti in the process. It’s also, oddly enough, the song least like the bulk of her output, so it seemed going in that the Cypher would be her chance to lay skeptics’ doubts to rest.

She absolutely does not do that, instead opting for a choppy, Carti-esque delivery on a relatively short verse that does little to allay the concerns about her placement before giving up and resorting to her trademark twerking. It’s an unusual choice for a rapper who is under fire and facing a make-or-break moment with all eyes on her. While it’s pioneering, to be sure (Megan Thee Stallion once pointed out that a female rapper would face a ton of criticism for rapping like Playboi Carti, and for all intents, it appears she was correct), and a boundary has been broken to allow women to branch out more stylistically, I can see Coi taking a lot more fire now — with this verse undermining much of the evidence that supporters could use to defend her.

It’ll be interesting to see how this Cypher will be received on social media as well as how it affects future installments and the ongoing debate about whether the Freshman Class even needs a Cypher anymore.

Watch the 2021 XXL Freshman Cypher above.