Rap is now something like a four-lane highway: wide open and full of speed. An artist's fortune can change nearly overnight, whether they've put in years of work or are dropping their first song. No matter the starting point, they can fashion themselves into a name to watch off the strength of of a few big songs, and burgeoning potential. In the case of Fort Worth, Texas rapper Iayze, after dropping his first song in the summer of 2019, and releasing 14 projects since then, his turning point came in December of 2021. In that month, he dropped "C'mere!," a song about chasing down his enemies (and a reference to a "situation" he addressed), where Iayze's ability to twist his voice through Auto-Tune shines. His unique cadences, plus his A-plus production choices led to the "C'mere!" video reaching 954,000 views in a little over a month.
Two months later, he dropped "556 (Green Tip)," which sounds more like a gritty, threat-filled studio session at an evil carnival. The track puts more emphasis on Iayze's pure rapping ability than his touch for melodies. The video for the song is inching towards 3 million views, and only goes to show that he can switch styles and still come up with a good song.
At just 19 years old, Iayze has accomplished plenty, including being signed to Geffen Records, by way of Simple Stupid Records. His most recent project, Virtuous, which houses "556 (Green Tip)," features his melodic delivery with rhymes centered on the road traveled so far. He caught up with XXL to discuss his beginnings, being a young father, the power of being committed to his craft and more.
Check out Iayze's The Break Live episode below.
Follow Iayze on SoundCloud and Instagram.
Standouts:
"C'mere!"
"556 (Green Tip)"
"Virtuoso"
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