Every year, XXL magazine does its famous Freshman Class cover with new upcoming hip-hop artists, and it always stirs up a conversation regarding what new upcoming artists will most likely pop next.
Last Thursday (June 20), the publication released its new Freshman Class cover featuring Rico Nasty, Megan Thee Stallion, YBN Cordae, Gunna, Tierra Whack, and Blueface, among others.
On Monday, actor Keith Powers presented the idea of a freshmen list for R&B artists, which caused an entirely new conversation to take place on social media.
In the spirit of this current conversation, here is a list of new upcoming RnB artists.
1. Ari Lennox
Origin: Washington D.C.
Single You Should Listen To: “Broke”
Project You Should Listen To: Pho
2.Queen Naija
Origin: Ypsilanti, MI
Single You Should Listen To: “Away From You”
Project You Should Listen To: Queen Naija
3.Lucky Daye
Origin: Los Angeles, California
Single You Should Listen To: “Roll Some Mo”
Project You Should Listen To: Painted
4.Mikhala Jene
Origin: Los Angeles, California
Single You Should Listen To: “Bless Ya (Fill a Void)”
Project You Should Listen To: Carolina Blues
5.Duendita
Origin: Queens, NY
Single You Should Listen To: “Pray”
Project You Should Listen To: direct line to My Creator
6.Summer Walker
Origin: Atlanta, Georgia
Single You Should Listen To: “Girls Need Love”
Project You Should Listen To: CLEAR
7.Sir
Origin: Inglewood, California
Single You Should Listen To: “D’Evils”
Project You Should Listen To: November
8.Nicole Bus
Origin: The Netherlands
Single You Should Listen To: “You”
Project You Should Listen To: T.O.T.A
9.Daniel Caesar
Origin: Oshawa, Ontario
Single You Should Listen To: “Japanese Denim”
Project You Should Listen To: Freudian
10. Baby Rose
Origin: Atlanta, Georgia
Single You Should Listen To: “Borderline”
Project You Should Listen To: TBA
11. Rayana Jay
Origin: Richmond, California
Single You Should Listen To: “Too Good”
Project You Should Listen To: Love Me Like
Who else would you add to this list?
Glennisha Morgan is a Detroit-bred multimedia journalist and writer. She writes about intersectionality, hip-hop, pop culture, queer issues, race, feminism, and her truth. Follow her on Twitter.
