(hip hop music)
- [Kalan.Frfr] Starting at ground zero,
like we don't got nothing. Like no fans.
- [Lakeyah] What I thought is never gonna happen for me,
happened.
(hip hop music continues)
- How would I describe my music? It's very bossy.
Very boastful. Very, you know all that swag.
Yeah very arrogant. That's how I would describe my music.
It's the type of music you wanna play when you think dress.
When you wanna remind yourself who the you are.
Yeah, that's me. That's my music. That's Lakeyah.
- [Tone Stith] I was in church a lot.
And you know that's why I picked up drums,
I picked up keys, I picked up singing.
And as I got older,
you know, around the age of 16 or so,
I was in a group and my group got signed.
And you know we were doing covers on YouTube
and things like that.
And then once we got signed, we ended up in L.A.
And when I got to L.A. it was just, that was it.
- I like to record, but I'm a skilled recording artist.
I know how to get in that booth and write that song
and make it sound beautiful.
And the backgrounds and the harmonies,
I can do it pretty quick like in 20 minutes.
So, it's not a long process for me either.
I can get in and out and go home,
and get in my bed and watch a movie, eat some food.
So yeah, recording for sure.
- [Babyface Ray] My music is pretty much a reality rap
of what's going on in today's world,
or what's going on with me or my surroundings.
You know what I'm saying?
Like, you ain't gonna find too much cap in my music.
If I say it then that's what's going on for real.
I just love the process of making music and performing it.
Something about going out there
and seeing my fans enjoying the music.
You know what I'm saying? That make me lit.
- I grew up listening to a lot of Kwaito.
I grew up listening to your Throne Piece,
your Brenda Fassie.
My mom bumps a lot of Throne Piece.
My mom bumps a lot of Brenda Fassie.
It's the Kwaito ancestor actually that inspired me
to be who I am today because (indistinct) you understand.
You can hear it in my lyrics too.
- Right now,
the accomplishment that I'm most proud of to date,
would have to be my visual for the crazy music video.
It's one of my most intentional videos that I've ever done.
I would describe my music as eclectic.
A blend of everything.
A mashup of all types of inspiration.
So eclectic.
- I like to go by The Street Princess.
My music represents what everyday girls go through.
How I first started off with music was
by posting covers and remixes, calling 'em Lehmixes
and just being consistent on social media.
And eventually, Yo Gotti came across my Lehmixes,
and the rest is history.
- Something that will surprise people about me
is probably the fact that I went to college
and graduated from college.
And I got my degree in Social Science.
Becoming an artist period was like a scary step.
Because I used to play football before I was a rapper.
So making that transition into becoming like an artist
and starting at ground zero, like you don't got nothing,
you don't have no fans, you don't know what to do.
You know what I'm saying?
I just knew I wanted to be a rapper.
You know, it's, it's scary.
- Some of my early influences, I don't really have many.
But I'd probably say Eminem, Lil Wayne,
that's, that's who I used to listen to the most.
- When I used to watch them shows
I used to, you know what I'm saying, picture being there.
I ain't just per se, picture being one of the performers
because when I was young, I ain't just think
that I was gonna be, that was gonna be my lane.
So I used to be like, maybe I'm be in the crowd.
You know what I'm saying?
(laughs)
But I ain't never pictured myself actually being there.
I still don't believe it. But I'm definitely grateful,
then I just be the super beast that is me.
- Five years ago, I set out a plan.
And I'm sitting in it right now,
like I'm sitting at the end of it, honestly.
I wrote it all down five years ago.
I live by that mantra. I write everything down.
I'm constantly recording.
Five years ago I said I wanted a Beyonce placement.
I wanted a record deal.
I wanted to play Essence Fest.
I wanted to play Made in America.
I wanted to be nominated for an Oscar.
I wanted to be nominated for a Grammy.
I'm sitting in that right now.
- Munch was financed with like an hour to meet.
And it was punched in.
I feel like Munch was inspired by like just all the
I've ever met in my whole life.
It was like a gradual process to realizing that it was viral
but they didn't stop making memes or talking about it.
And it would be like a day, like a whole week passed.
And then like two weeks, three weeks, a month, two months.
And now they're still talking about it.
So, it took a while for it to settle in though.
Like it probably took me like, I don't know, a couple weeks.
It feels crazy. Like, I just feel blessed.
I'm excited. I know it's like, it's kind of like
hitting the lottery when you make a hit.
So, I just feel like I hit the lottery twice.