Music moves quickly these days. With so many new artists popping up, it can be difficult for any rap fan to keep pace. Our monthly column 10 Rappers You Should Know Right Now cuts through the noise to tell you the rising hip-hop artists on Audiomack you should be paying attention to. Listen to standout selections from all 10 artists as a playlist below.

PGF Nuk

Hometown: Chicago, IL

With last October’s “Waddup,” PGF Nuk announced himself as Chicago’s next rising star. Nuk largely eschews melody and overtly aggressive rapping, instead opting for a straight-ahead, laid-back delivery that makes his threats, and the ominous production he raps over, all the more menacing. “It’s Nuk,” a more recent offering, follows the same formula, as the young rapper introduces himself and his crew over a hypnotizing instrumental.

Vintage Lee

Hometown: Boston, MA

Following her 2017 track “HennyThings Possible” being featured in a recent episode of HBO’s Euphoria, Boston rapper Vintage Lee has returned with a new loosie entitled “B2B.” The track finds the Roxbury rapper coasting over a bouncy beat with a slurred double-time flow. The song, which comes in at just over 90 seconds, at first seems like a playful lyrical exercise but, as Vintage Lee raps on the chorus, it’s actually a testament to her work ethic: “Go back-to-back and I work through the winter, go back-to-back and I work through the summer.”

Dro Kenji

Hometown: Summerville, South Carolina

For such a young artist, Dro Kenji seems to have been through a good deal of turmoil in his relationships. The South Carolina artist has a flair for the dramatic, both in the stories he tells and in his melodic delivery, and his recent project, January’s WITH OR WITHOUT YOU, is no exception. On standout track “DISASTER,” he finds an effortless melodic pocket over the slow-swung beat, at one point suggesting, “Let’s make a disaster, and throw it all away and watch the world burn.”

Vince Ash

Hometown: Hammond, IN

Hard-hitting Indiana rapper Vince Ash seems to channel both Three 6 Mafia and Gucci Mane on his latest single “Iz.” The song’s towering production is reminiscent of the Memphis group’s most anthemic tracks, while Vince Ash’s delivery midway through mimics Gucci’s matter-of-fact drawl on “Lemonade.” All in all, good company to keep for the Hammond native, whose voice is more than enough to carry the trunk-ready slap.

Big Boss Vette

Hometown: St. Louis, MI

Over twinkling sparse piano keys, Big Boss Vette starts off “Heavy” with a reminder to herself: “These hoes ain’t fucking with you, Vette.” Over the next two minutes, the St. Louis rapper offers proof positive, cutting between piano and 808 stabs with dexterity as she retells the story of her come-up. The song is as much a showcase of her skill as it is a reminder to herself why she’s standing in the promising position she’s in.

C0LDGAME

Hometown: Oakland, CA

C0LDGAME built up a local following a few years ago with his catchy, percussive flow but his momentum faltered due to legal issues. Since his release in 2021, the Oakland rapper has picked up where he left off. “Duckin’ Smoke,” a recent collaboration with Boosie Badazz, finds C0LDGAME delivering a simple but memorable hook and, at times, seemingly putting his own take on a flow popularized by rappers across the Bay, like KE and the late Lil Yase.

HAZEY

Hometown: Liverpool, UK

Scouse drill wasn’t something I knew I needed in my life until I heard “Packs and Potions,” a new single from Liverpool rapper HAZEY. The song’s beat is all abstract percussion, unlike anything I’ve ever heard from drill across the pond, and HAZEY’s distinctive Liverpudlian brogue elevates the entire affair. But, perhaps most importantly, the song averages a soccer reference every two bars, including a shoutout to hometown hero Trent Alexander-Arnold and a stray shot at former World Cup winner Sami Khedira.

RealYungPhil

Hometown: Hartford, CT

Connecticut’s RealYungPhil and North Carolina producer Dylvinci proved their undeniable chemistry last year on Philvinci, an eight-track project that paired the rapper’s hazy approach with ethereal, sample-based production. On their new follow-up, Dr. Philvinci, released February 14, the two build upon the formula and add more names to the equation on the production side. Some of the standout moments come from Phil’s frequent Surf Gang collaborators like EvilGiane and Eera who bring a calm, introspective melody to life with hard kicks and triumphant strings.

iayze

Hometown: Fort Worth, TX

iayze, which is somehow pronounced “Jace,” has something serious on his hands with “556.” The song has existed in various forms online for months, ripped from snippets and Instagram Live streams, but the official release lives up to the hype. The song is built around an instrumental that sort of resembles those meme-like beats that tend to go viral on Twitter but its off-kilter horn melody and jaunty drums provide iayze the perfect palette to talk shit and, towards the end, deliver the song’s best line: “She want me to save a bitch, I’m not Christopher Reeves.”

ZahSosaa

Hometown: Philadelphia, PA

ZahSosaa started making noise in his hometown of Philly around three or four years ago, dropping a steady stream of melodic tracks that seemed to certify Lil Uzi Vert’s looming influence over the city. But ZahSossa has found his own voice more recently with “Shake Dhat” and a number of other songs that fit into the recent wave of Philly and New Jersey club-rap, which takes the street dance music traditions from both regions and adds vocals with some local variations. “Shake Dhat” has quickly emerged as the anthem for the emerging sound, leaning on heavy bass and Zahsossa’s catchy, nasally voice.

10 Rappers You Should Know Right Now (February 2022)