Leikeli47’s upcoming album Shape Up is one of Uproxx’s most anticipated hip-hop albums of spring 2022, and the masked MC dropped by The Tonight Show studio to show why. Wearing a pink Celine sweatshirt with her customary Nike Air Maxes and bandana balaclava, she performed a fiery rendition of the album’s lead single “Chitty Bang” in a stripped-down set backed by her DJ/hype man, who you may know as former annual “Rap Up” rapper Skillz(!).
The Virginia rapper — Leikeli, not Skillz — took a long and well-deserved break after her last album, 2018’s Acrylic. She reappeared in the summer of 2020 with “Zoom,” ostensibly the first single from her comeback album. However, it seemed she wanted to perfect the album in question, heading back to the studio for another year and a half before returning with “Chitty Bang” in January this year. Shortly afterward, she announced the release date for Shape Up (May 13) with the single “BITM.” The most recently released single, “LL Cool J,” continued Leikeli’s tradition of mystery. Now, with the album right around the corner, it’s time to see whether Shape Up is worth the wait — and judging from the output so far, it should be.
Watch Leikeli47 perform “Chitty Bang” on The Tonight Show above.
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.
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.
Leikeli47 has always played it mysterious and her new video, “LL Cool J,” offers no exceptions to her cryptic demeanor. In fact, the masked rapper doesn’t even appear in the greyscale video, opting to cede the spotlight to a variety of models decked out in glimmering ensembles reflecting the song’s theme: Ladies Love Cool Jewelry. Of course, she could very well be in the video and we’d be unlikely to know — that’s her whole deal, after all.
Lyrically, the song finds Leikeli pursuing a man before turning him into her latest accessory. “And to you silly hoes out here still tryna linger / You can’t find him, ’cause I got him wrapped around my finger,” she boasts. The effect is something like that of a gritty appreciation song, similar to MC Lyte’s 1993 hit single “Ruffneck.” It’s a departure from the sort of independent woman or gold digger anthems that have proliferated over the last couple of years, and it’s pretty refreshing, representing a more accessible sound from the usually dance-centric Leikeli47.
The new track is set to appear on LK47’s upcoming album, Shape Up, from which she previously shared the singles “BITM” and “Chitty Bang.” It’ll be her first new album since 2018’s Acrylic, and is due on April 15 via Hardcover and RCA.
Masked Brooklyn-native rapper Leikeli47 is showing off her love for New York in the video for her new single “BITM,” which comes from her just-announced album Shape Up out this spring. It’s her third LP overall but will serve as the finale to her trilogy, following 2017’s Wash Set and 2018’s Acrylic.
The song has a daunting, pulsating beat and assertive, whisper-like vocals as she repeats the confident hook, “B*tch, I’m the man.” The eerie atmosphere is full of echoes and reverberations, and the bridge features a kind of chant about rent being due. It’s idiosyncratic and hypnotic, like her previous single “Chitty Bang,” which was released earlier this year after being on the Madden ’22 soundtrack and then mysteriously disappearing late last year. It has been confirmed as a track on this new album. Earlier in the pandemic, she also unleashed the aptly-titled “Zoom,” whose creative video borrowed its aesthetic from the 16-bit video games of yesteryear, featuring an animated version of Leikeli.
Watch the video for “BITM” above, which features footage from a recent performance of hers at a sold-out show at Elsewhere. Find the album artwork for Shape Up below.
Back in August, the subject of a Reddit thread read “Does anyone know where I can find the Leikeli47 song from the Madden 22 soundtrack online?” The mysterious banger from the Madden ’22 soundtrack indeed was nowhere to be found. “I believe it’s called ‘Chitty Bang’…..Song f*cking slaps but I can’t find it anywhere…Anyone knows whats up???” another user commented. Today, we finally have an answer for these patient hip-hop loving gamers.
For the first time in a year and a half, the masked Brooklyn rapper has officially released new music, in the form of the stone cold banger, “Chitty Bang.” Leikeli47 has always flashed a dynamic style, whether it’d be on the big horns of “Tic Boom,” the swing and bounce of “2nd Fiddle” or the dancehall charm of the uplifting “Hoyt & Schermerhorn.” But much like on 2020’s “Zoom,” Leikeli just comes to getcha on “Chitty Bang.” She attacks the hook over a totally massive bass line and spits heat on a verse with a fierce cadence akin to Cardi B:
“I see them hoes keep trying
Professional imitators
Ref, where’s the flag?
Now you’re making me mad
When 47 get that
B*tch you betta get back”
No word yet on whether “Chitty Bang” will end up on the follow-up album to 2018’s excellent Acryclic, but a press release for the new jam advised us to “stay tuned for more new music from Leikeli47.”
