It is always stimulating to see new rappers rise to fame from the bottom up, especially when it is a woman who has made her mark. There is no doubt that the south has produced some high quality talent over the past few decades. Rap, in particular, enjoys great success and legacy throughout the south, especially in Texas. Rising stars such as Erica Banks are bound to hold household names in the near future because of their ability and work ethic. It’s still pretty early in the game for Ms. DeSoto, but she is definitely making a mark on the game right now. Diary Of a Flow Queen, the debut studio album from Erica Banks, is out today (June 17).
Despite the sluggish start to the year, music in general has been doing well this year, and Erica Banks has certainly contributed at a fabulous pace. The DeSoto rapper’s hit single “Bust It” came fresh from her tour and set the tone for all of the great things she will be able to give to us in the days ahead. Diary Of a Flow Queen is a manifesto of the artist’s ascendance to the top and a clear demonstration that she is here to stay.
In an interview with HotNewHipHop, Banks discussed how surprised she was to hear that DaBaby wanted her to sign to his Billion Dollar Baby label after just a year of rapping: “I just wasn’t expecting it to happen so fast.” I had just started rapping a year before, and then he reached out to me, although it wasn’t very recently. However, I was overwhelmed. When you have people offering different goods in different locations, you’re left wondering, “Where should I go?” I simply go with my intuition.
In addition to dropping dope vibes for his fans, G Perico continues to release music. Perico’s latest is “That’s My Dawg,” a Latin-influenced tune produced by Trunx about the unconditional love Perico has for his homies:
In addition to his previously released singles, G Perico has already delivered a number of top-notch tracks this year, such as “Bacc 2 The Blocc” featuring Curren$y and “Half A Bird” featuring Dave East . Aside from the Tango EP, he also released the eight-track Tango EP, featuring a collaboration with BlocBoi Fame, as well as the standout tracks “INNERPRIZE RAP” and “Hurricane.”
Since G Perico parted ways with Roc Nation, he’s released more than a dozen albums under his own label Innerprize. There have been many top tier releases in the past year, such as Welcome to the Land, No Love In LA, and Play 2 Win. According to an interview he conducted with Home Grown Radio, he mentioned these reasons as to why partnering up with Roc Nation made sense at the time.
“I was independent when I walked in. Afterwards, I did my deal, and I think that was the right decision for me. I would probably be burned out right now if I hadn’t done that. As a result, I got to know people, and I formed relationships with Emery, Jay Brown … that’s family.”
PJ Morton released his album Watch the Sun in April. On its eleven original songs, Morton showcases his songwriting and production abilities. In addition, Watch the Sun includes performances from Nas, Jill Scott, Chronixx, JoJo, Zacardi Cortez, Mr. Talkbox, Wale, Alex Isley, Stevie Wonder, El DeBarge, Gene Moore, Samoht, Darrel “MusiqCity” Walls and Tim Rogers.
The official music video for Morton’s Watch the Sun song “On My Way,” which features El DeBarge, is shown this week. He delivers lyrics in the new video about providing for those who are in need: Morton explores different locations in the visual while delivering his lyrics:
A Grammy award was also recognized earlier this year for PJ Morton’s contribution to Jon Batiste’s We Are album. Adding to the accolades he has received previously, in addition to the best traditional R&B performance award in 2019, he won a Grammy in 2020 for Best R&B Song and a Grammy in 2021 for Best Gospel Album.
As part of the tour, Morton will perform in 12 cities across North America for four months beginning this Friday (June 17). The bill includes many historic venues across the country. As part of the promotion of his new album, the award-winning performer, songwriter and soul singer added six new East Coast dates, starting in Virginia and extending through Baltimore.
With assists from Wiz Khalifa and Curren$y, Guapdad 4000 assembles a dream team for a new music video, “Pose.” Wiz Khalifa and Curren$y contribute as well to the production, making for a feel-good video that showcases the charm of each rapper. With the upcoming single, Wiz Khalifa puts the spotlight on some production work by Drew Banga:
He has blessed his fan base all year with a steady stream of new releases. You can listen to recent releases like “Cheap,” “Fearless,” “Black Iverson” and “Ruthless.”
Khlifa has been working on a collection of collaboration albums since April, including Full Court Press, which he recorded with Smoke DZA, Big K.R.I.T., and Girl Talk. His previous album was dominated by fan favorites “How The Story Goes,” “Put You On,” and “Ain’t No Fun”. Earlier this month, Curren$y released his new album Spring Clean 2, which was produced entirely by Fuse from 808 Mafia.
The release of SZA debut studio album Ctrl, five years ago this week, marks a milestone. 14 tracks were included on the album, including collaborations with none other than Kendrick Lamar, Travis Scott, Isaiah Rashad, and James Fauntleroy. SZA and Top Dawg Entertainment were able to achieve significant critical and commercial success with the project. This included landing SZA at number three on the Billboard 200 before her music spent an incredible 260 weeks atop that chart. Over the years, the project has also been certified double Platinum and released classic singles including “The Weekend,” “Love Galore,” and “Broken Clocks.”
SZA and TDE announced that they will upgrade Ctrl’s fifth anniversary with a deluxe upgrade. This upgrade includes seven additional songs recorded between 2014 and 2017, as the singer revealed at the time. Among the seven songs is an alternative version of “Love Galore” which includes a new verse by singer SZA, adding to the song’s original theme of regret about love gone by:
In the months since the release of Ctrl, SZA has teased a forthcoming album through loose tracks such as “Passport,” “Hit Different,” “Good Days,” “Nightbird,” “Joni,” and “I Hate U.” Additionally, she contributed music to a series of big moments in entertainment, including Lamar’s score to Black Panther, as well as collaborations with DJ Khaled, Cardi B, Justin Timberlake, Post Malone, and Megan Thee Stallion.
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