Ken Carson Explained

Ken Carson should not be confused with Ben Carson.

Ken Carson
Birth Name:Kenyatta Lee Frazier Jr.
Birth Place:Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Birth Date:11 April 2000
Years Active:2015–present
Discography:Ken Carson discography

Kenyatta Lee Frazier Jr. (born April 11, 2000), known professionally as Ken Carson, is an American rapper, singer, and record producer from Atlanta, Georgia. He is recognized as an emerging figure in the trap and rage subgenres of hip hop. Carson initially gained attention for his SoundCloud releases and collaborations with fellow Atlanta rapper Playboi Carti.

In 2019, Carson signed with Playboi Carti's record label Opium, an imprint of Interscope Records to release his debut studio album, Project X (2021). Despite generally unfavorable critical reception, its songs "Rock N Roll" and "Run + Ran" gained popularity on TikTok. His second album, X (2022), entered the Billboard 200 despite continued unfavorable reception. His third studio album, A Great Chaos (2023), peaked number 11 on the chart and saw a critical incline; its deluxe release spawned his first Billboard Hot 100 with the single "Overseas".

Carson is associated with Opium labelmates Destroy Lonely and Homixide Gang.[1]

Career

2015–2019: Beginnings

Carson initially joined 808 Mafia in 2015 as a rapper after meeting fellow record producer TM88,[2] and would begin releasing music on SoundCloud as early as 2017. After gaining popularity in the underground rap scene, he would be discovered by fellow Atlanta rapper Playboi Carti and signed to his label Opium in 2019. Carson was also the first to be signed to Opium out of Destroy Lonely, and Homixide Gang.[3] [4]

2020–2022: Teen X, Project X and X

See main article: Project X (album) and X (Ken Carson album).

After signing with Opium in 2019, Carson released two extended plays—Boy Barbie and Teen X—the following year.

At the start of 2021, he released his third EP, Teen X: Relapsed, before releasing his debut studio album Project X later that year.[5] [6] In February 2022, he appeared as a guest on the track "Gëek high" off American rapper Yeat's album, 2 Alive.[7] He released his second studio album X on July 8, 2022.[8] It peaked at number 115 on the Billboard 200.[9]

In October 2022, he and fellow Atlanta rapper SoFaygo released a single titled "Hell Yeah" for SoFaygo's debut studio album Pink Heartz with an accompanying music video.[10] [11] [12] On October 31, 2022, Ken Carson released a deluxe version of his X album named Xtended, alongside a music video on YouTube for his song "MDMA" featuring Destroy Lonely.[13]

2023–present: A Great Chaos

See main article: A Great Chaos.

Carson released the single "I Need U" on February 14, 2023.[14] On May 5, 2023, Carson featured on Destroy Lonely's debut studio album, If Looks Could Kill, on the song "Money & Sex".[15] [16] In June 2023, Carson produced the song "x2" from Lil Uzi Vert's third studio album, Pink Tape.[17] On October 6, 2023, Carson tweeted a pre-save link for his third studio album A Great Chaos, indicating that the project would be released on October 13 with a tracklist of 18 songs;[18] three days later, nearly the entire album leaked online after several tracks were shared on a Discord server.[19] On October 12, an album launch party was held at the Silo dance club in Brooklyn to commemorate the project's release. Carson performed tracks "Fighting My Demons", "Lose It", "Hardcore", "Singapore", and "Paranoid" alongside his Opium labelmate, Destroy Lonely, before bringing out fellow rapper and the aforementioned label's founder, Playboi Carti, to perform songs from the rapper's latest album, "Stop Breathing" from Whole Lotta Red (2020), and "Fe!n" from Travis Scott's fourth studio album Utopia (2023).[20] On July 5, 2024, he released the deluxe edition of A Great Chaos, containing seven additional tracks, including the single "Overseas", which was released on April 12, 2024.[21] [22]

Musical style

Carson's musical style has been described as "[having] electronic production that is energetic in nature" and having "focused flows."[23] He has been compared to his mentor Playboi Carti, especially his 2020 album Whole Lotta Red as well as to Lil Uzi Vert for his flow and mentality.[6]

Discography

See main article: Ken Carson discography.

Studio albums

Tours

Headlining

Notes and References

  1. 1716505380400906510 . billboardcharts . Debuts on this week's #Billboard200... . October 23, 2023 . October 24, 2023.
  2. Web site: Ken Carson (Friday). Creative Loafing. 2022-09-15.
  3. Web site: Ken Carson Is a Leader of the New School. Complex. September 7, 2022.
  4. Web site: Playboi Carti Gives Rare Interview on New Music, Fatherhood, More. August 17, 2022. XXL.
  5. Web site: Ken Car$on drops long-awaited debut album 'Project X'. Our Generation Music. July 23, 2021. July 7, 2022.
  6. Web site: Ken Car$on: Project X. 2022-09-15 . . en-US.
  7. Web site: Gëek high (feat. Ken Carson). Spotify. September 23, 2022.
  8. Web site: Stream Ken Carson's New Album 'X' f/ Destroy Lonely and Homixide Gang. Complex. September 15, 2022.
  9. Web site: Billboard 200 Week of July 23, 2022. Billboard. September 7, 2022.
  10. Web site: SoFaygo and Ken Carson Drop Video for "Hell Yeah". Complex. October 22, 2022.
  11. Web site: SoFaygo & Ken Carson Bring Undeniable Energy On "Hell Yeah". HotNewHipHop. October 21, 2022 . October 22, 2022.
  12. Taylor Swift, Lil Uzi Vert, Carly Rae Jepsen, and All the Songs You Need to Know This Week. Rolling Stone. October 22, 2022.
  13. Web site: XTENDED by Ken Carson. October 31, 2022. music.apple.com.
  14. Web site: Here's what went down at Ken Carson's sold-out London show . Crack Magazine . 12 October 2023.
  15. Web site: 2023-05-02 . Destroy Lonely's 'If Looks Could Kill': Everything We Know So Far . 2023-10-10 . UPROXX . en-US.
  16. Web site: 2023-05-16 . Destroy Lonely's 'If Looks Could Kill' is a beacon of triumphant darkness . 2023-10-10 . Our Generation Music . en-US.
  17. Web site: Bras Nevares . Gabriel . Lil Uzi Vert Thanks Ken Carson For Producing "x2" Off Of "Pink Tape" . . 2023-11-16 . 2023-07-03.
  18. News: Armstrong . Sam . 2023-10-08 . Ken Carson Announces New Album A Great Chaos . . 2023-10-10.
  19. News: Zamora . José . 2023-10-09 . Opium's Ken Carson Has New Album Leaked Online . Raptology . 2023-10-10.
  20. News: Kurzweil . Lucas . 2023-10-14 . Ken Carson Introduces 'A Great Chaos' With Action Packed Concert at Silo in Brooklyn . NYS Music . 2023-10-15.
  21. Web site: 2024-07-05 . Ken Carson Drops 'A Great Chaos' Deluxe Edition . 2024-07-05 . Hypebeast.
  22. Web site: Espinoza . Joshua . Ken Carson Unleashes 'A Great Chaos' Deluxe Edition . 2024-07-05 . Complex . en-us.
  23. Web site: Ken Carson Makes A Statement With New Album "X". HotNewHipHop. July 8, 2022 . September 15, 2022.

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