November 13 / 17

A new wave of hip-hop artists has come and put their collective stamp in the music industry. Some have managed to swim, while others have drowned. Belcalis Almanzar or Cardi B. is one of those who is swimming right along the sharp waves with aplomb. According to Billboard, she is now the first female rapper to chart her very first three entries in the top 10 positions of the list, simultaneously, on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart. You may remember her from the sixth season of  VH1 reality tv series, Love & Hip-Hop: New York.

Raised in the Highbridge neighborhood in the South Bronx section of New York City, Cardi B. became an exotic dancer at the age of 19. By 2013, her videos became viral on social media through Vine and Instaram. Cut to 2015, when Cardi B. made her musical debut on Shaggy‘s remix to his single ‘Boom Boom‘, with Popcaan. That same year, she made her music video debut, ‘Cheap Ass Weave’, her rendition of Lady Leshurr’s ‘Queen’s Speech 4’. Cardi B. released a mixtape titled Gangsta Bitch Music, Vol. 1 March 2016. In September 2016, her single, ‘What a Girl Likes’ was part of a collaborative album released by KSR Group titled, Underestimated: The Album. 

“a raw and aggressive rapper in the style of Lil’ Kim and Foxy Brown.”

-David Jeffries, AllMusic

 “unapologetic does not begin to describe the totally unfiltered and sheer Cardi B-ness of Cardi B’s personality. She’s a hood chick who’s not afraid to be hood no matter the setting. Cardi B is Cardi B 24/7, 365, this is why she resonates with people, and that same energy comes out in her music.”

-Complex

By January, she released her second mixtape, the second installment of Gangsta Bitch Music series. Cardi B signed her first major deal with the recording label with Atlantic in February this year. This past summer ‘Bodak Yellow‘ was released, which became a  hit. The single reached the top two of the of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart also becoming number one on the Hot Rap Songs chart and number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Bodak Yellow was certified gold by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America). In September of this year, Cardi B bagged the top spot of the Hot 100 chart with Bodak Yellow, making her the first solo female rapper to do so since Lauryn Hill in 1998. Adding another diamond to her crown, she became the first female artist to land her first three entries in the top 10 of the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.

Not only is Cardi B making waves in music, but also in fashion. Earlier this year she partnered with M.A.C. and Rio Uribe’s Gypsy Sport for an event during New York Fashion Week. She played Mercedes in BET’s Being Mary Jane and she was a guest on the celebrity show Hip Hop Squares. As I said before, some swim, some drown, but Miss Cardi B is swimming and enjoying the ride.

Enjoy the rest of your Monday, be blessed!

Image source: Miami.com, Dazed, & karencivil.com