Denzel Curry
Denzel Rae Don Curry (born February 16, 1995)[1] is an American rapper and singer.[2][3] Born and raised in Carol City, Florida, Curry started rapping while in the sixth grade and began working on his first mixtape in 2011. Influenced by underground Florida rapper SpaceGhostPurrp, the mixtape was later featured on Purrp's social media, giving Curry attention in the local music scene and resulting in him joining Purrp's hip-hop collective Raider Klan.
Denzel Curry | |
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Curry in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Denzel Rae Don Curry |
| Also known as |
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| Born | February 16, 1995 Carol City, Miami Gardens, Florida, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Years active | 2011–present |
| Labels |
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| Formerly of | Raider Klan |
| Website | denzelcurry |
Curry left Raider Klan in 2013, releasing his debut studio album, Nostalgic 64, in September of that year, while still in high school. He has since released three extended plays: 32 Zel/Planet Shrooms in 2015, 13 in 2017, and Unlocked (a collaboration with Kenny Beats) in 2020, and four studio albums: Imperial in 2016, Ta13oo in 2018, Zuu in 2019, and Melt My Eyez See Your Future in 2022. Ta13oo, Zuu, and Melt My Eyez debuted at numbers 28, 32, and 51 on the Billboard 200 chart, respectively, with Melt My Eyez returning at number 17 after the release of an extended edition. All of his projects have garnered significant critical acclaim.
Early life
Denzel Rae Don Curry was born on February 16, 1995, in Carol City, Florida. He is of Bahamian descent through both his mother and father. Curry started down an artist's path with early poetry ambitions in elementary school before he began rapping in the sixth grade. His time was spent at a local Boys & Girls Clubs of America chapter where he challenged others to rap battles. He attended Miami's Design and Architecture High School for two years before being expelled. Curry then attended Miami Carol City Senior High School, where he started working on Nostalgic 64 while still attending class.[4] In a 2018 interview with The Breakfast Club, Curry disclosed that he was molested by an unnamed older male during his childhood.[5]
Career
2011–2012: Career beginnings
On September 24, 2011, Curry released his first mixtape, titled King Remembered Underground Tape 1991–1995. The whole project that Curry posted was later included on SpaceGhostPurrp's page, which prompted the birth of Denzel's music career. Following the release of Curry's first mixtape, Curry became a member of SpaceGhostPurrp's hip hop group, Raider Klan.[6][7]
In 2012, he released his second mixtape, titled King of the Mischievous South Vol. 1 Underground Tape 1996, which caught the attention of fellow American rapper Earl Sweatshirt and other members of the Odd Future label.[8]
Curry's third mixtape, titled Strictly for My R.V.I.D.X.R.Z., was released after the death of Trayvon Martin, who also lived in Carol City and went to the same high school as Denzel Curry. His style of rap and the name of the record were heavily inspired by Tupac Shakur.[8]
In late 2012, Curry met his manager Mark Maturah, and under his guidance, released his first studio single, "Dark & Violent", featuring J. K. The Reaper and Nell, to SoundCloud.
In 2021, a mixtape named "Curry Wuz Here" surfaced on YouTube, and the release date was claimed to be January 16, 2011.
2013–2014: Nostalgic 64
The group Raider Klan was disbanded, which led to Curry deciding to embark on his solo rap career.[9] On September 3, 2013, Curry released his debut full-length album, titled Nostalgic 64. The album features guest appearances from JK the Reaper, Lil Ugly Mane, Mike G, Nell, Robb Bank$, Stephen A. Clark, and Yung Simmie, among others.[10] In 2014, Curry was featured on Deniro Farrar's track, called "Bow Down" (included from Farrar's Rebirth EP)[11] and Curry was featured on Dillon Cooper's track, called "Eyes of the World" (included from Cooper's X:XX mixtape).[12] Curry himself has stated that he was heavily inspired by Outkast's record, Aquemini, saying he drew the cover for Nostalgic 64 while listening to the record. He also was inspired by Goodie Mob and CeeLo Green, and other southern music.
2015–2016: 32 Zel/Planet Shrooms and Imperial
On June 9, 2015, Curry released his first double EP, 32 Zel/Planet Shrooms, which contained his breakout single "Ultimate". The song went viral, and was played over Bottle Flip videos among others. It has amassed over 175 million streams on Spotify and earned 65 million views on YouTube. His first release in 2016 was the single "Flying Nimbus".
His second full-length album, titled Imperial, was released on March 9, 2016, then re-released later on Spotify as the deluxe version on October 14, 2016.[13]
In June 2016, Curry appeared in XXL magazine as part of their 2016 Freshmen Class. As part of this appearance, Curry performed a 'freshman cypher' alongside Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty, 21 Savage, and Kodak Black. As of March 2021, this cypher has received over 180 million YouTube views, by far the most for the XXL channel.[14]
2017–2018: 13 and Ta13oo
On May 13, 2017, Curry uploaded a track titled "Hate Government [demo]" to his SoundCloud account. In the weeks that followed, he released two more demos for songs titled "Equalizer [demo]" and "Zeltron 6 Billion" featuring Lil Ugly Mane. After these releases as well as a series of cryptic posts on social media (seemingly portraying another alter ego called Zeltron), he released an EP titled 13 on June 25, 2017.[15] All of the demo tracks were included on the EP as well as two other new songs. On August 18, 2017, Curry released another song called "Skywalker."[16] Later that year, on September 22, a remastered version of 32 Zel was released, including a remix of "Ultimate" featuring Juicy J.[17]
Since he started releasing demos for songs on 13, Curry made several mentions of his third studio album titled, Ta13oo. 13 serves as a sampler to Ta13oo, and no release date for the album was announced. On February 28, 2018, he appeared on the song "Kristi," by artist ASAP Ferg, which also featured IDK.[18] It was first performed live in Austin, TX on March 10, during their collaborative tour.[19] On March 16, 2018, he uploaded the song "Uh Huh," once again featuring IDK, onto his official YouTube channel.[20]
On April 2, 2018, Curry released the lead single off of Ta13oo titled "Sumo" on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 radio show.[21] On May 24, 2018, Curry released the second single off the album titled, "Percs". Curry then released the third single titled, "Clout Cobain", on July 13, 2018, and announced that his album Ta13oo, would be released in three acts: The first act, Light, was released on July 25, followed by Gray on July 26, and Dark on July 27. Each previously-released single represents one of the album's acts, as "Sumo" represents Light, "Clout Cobain" represents Gray, and "Percs" represents Dark, which come together cohesively to form Ta13oo.
2019–2021: Zuu, 13lood In + 13lood Out, and Unlocked
On February 14, 2019, Curry performed a cover of "Bulls on Parade" by Rage Against the Machine on the Australian radio station Triple J as part of Like a Version, which was met with widespread acclaim.[22] His cover went on to place 5th on that year's Triple J Hottest 100 countdown.
On May 8, 2019, Curry released "Ricky", his first single since the release of Ta13oo. The song is titled after his father, whom the song is inspired by. On May 22, 2019, Curry released a second single title "Speedboat" and announced the release of his next album Zuu for May 31, 2019.[23]
On July 15, 2019, Curry made his television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, performing a medley of "Ricky" and "Wish" from his album Zuu. He also revealed that he had cut his signature dreadlocks.[24]
On July 24th, 2019, Curry joined artists such as Germ, City Morgue, Trash Talk, Shoreline Mafia, Night Lovell, Pouya, and Turnstile on a nationwide tour titled "Grey Day Tour", which was created by the hip-hop duo $uicideboy$. The tour was completed almost a month later on August 23rd, 2019.
On January 6, 2020, Curry released a project titled 13lood 1n + 13lood Out, featuring fellow rappers Ghostemane, Xavier Wulf, ZillaKami and AK of The Underachievers. The project was initially announced in November 2018.[25]
On February 7, 2020, Curry released Unlocked, an EP collaboration with Kenny Beats. The release was accompanied with an animated short film.[26] In August 2020, Curry was featured on the soundtrack to the Madden NFL 21 game, on the song "Lemonade", with singer Yungblud.[27] In October 2020, Curry was featured on $NOT's track "Sangria".[28]
On March 5, 2021, Curry released Unlocked 1.5, a remix of his previous collaboration with Kenny Beats. The remix album features new production from Robert Glasper, The Alchemist, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Sango, Jay Versace, Godmode, and Charlie Heat, as well as new features from Smino, Joey Bada$$, and Benny the Butcher among others.[29]
In June 2021, Curry appeared on FX Network's "The Choe Show", alongside David Choe.[30]
Curry was featured on the September 2021 song "Bleach", released on rapper ZillaKami's debut album, DOG BOY.[31]
Curry collaborated on the track "Dynasties and Dystopia" from the Netflix series Arcane, alongside Gizzle and Bren Joy.
2022: Melt My Eyez See Your Future
On January 5, 2022, the official trailer for Curry's fifth studio album, titled Melt My Eyez See Your Future, was uploaded to his YouTube channel. It was revealed that the album would contain guest appearances from artists such as T-Pain, 6lack, Slowthai, Rico Nasty, J.I.D, and Thundercat, among others. Curry said the project would feature a new, more mature sound, different from his previous works: "Y'all are not going to hear the same type of Denzel anymore."[32] On January 24, a single titled "Walkin", along with a Western-inspired music video directed by Adrian Villagomez, was released. Curry also said the album "is made up of everything that I couldn't [include] on Ta13oo or Imperial because I was going through depression [and] anger issues", and would take inspiration from traditional hip-hop, drum and bass, trap, poetry, and jazz.[33] The same day, a North American and European tour promoting the album (with guest acts Kenny Mason, Mike Dimes, Redveil, and PlayThatBoiZay) was announced.[34] On February 24, Curry released another single from the upcoming album, "Zatoichi" featuring Slowthai. It was accompanied by a music video also directed by Adrian Villagomez.[35] On March 18, Curry announced the album would be released on March 25.[36] On March 21, a third single, "Troubles" featuring T-Pain, was released[37] along with a music video.[38] The album was released on March 25, 2022.[39] It debuted at number 51 on the Billboard 200 chart,[40] and at number 23 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[41]
Curry recorded a song featuring rapper Reason, "1st Quarter", as a contribution to Apple Music's "collection of exclusively commissioned new songs from Black creatives",[42] titled Juneteenth 2022: Freedom Songs. He commented: "It's an accomplishment to make it through the first quarter of my life. Especially as a Black man in America".[43]
Curry's song featuring PlayThatBoiZay, "Let It All Hang Out", was included in Elvis—a biographical movie about Elvis Presley that premiered in June 2022—as well as on the movie's soundtrack album.
On June 24, 2022, a collaboration between Dot da Genius, JID, Curry, and Kid Cudi, titled "Talk About Me", was released, along with a music video directed by Cole Bennett.[44]
On June 29, 2022, Curry performed an NPR Tiny Desk Concert.[45] On July 21, he performed "Walkin" on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.[46]
On September 30, 2022, Curry released Melt My Eyez See Your Future (The Extended Edition). The album features reimagined versions of songs from the original album with live instrumentation performed by the Cold Blooded Soul Band, which performed with Curry on his NPR Tiny Desk Concert and The Tonight Show performance.[47]
Personal life
On February 27, 2014,[48] Curry's brother, Treon "Tree" Johnson,[49] died as a result of complications after being tased by the police in Hialeah, Florida. Officers had responded to an emergency call made by a man claiming that Johnson was beating two dogs with a metal pipe. Officers then employed physical force, pepper spray, and a taser in an attempt to restrain Johnson. He succumbed to his wounds, and he ultimately died after being transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital. His family argued that the incident was a case of police brutality.[50] Curry has spoken about Johnson's death and police brutality in interviews and in his music. One example of this is the lyric "Cops killing' blacks when the whites do the most," in his song "The Last." [48][51][52]
Curry always expressed his love for art, with many different comic books and anime shows inspiring him to draw.[53]
Until January 2017, Curry lived with XXXTentacion, Ronny J and other members of his C9 collective in Miami in the self-called ULT House. As he himself stated in an interview with Montreality, after he had broke up with his girlfriend, he painted his whole room, and to support him other people living in the ULT House drew all over their walls too. He has since lived in Los Angeles.
In January 2021, Curry found out that he is related to St. Louis rapper Smino through the discovery of a shared uncle.[54]
Discography
- Nostalgic 64 (2013)
- Imperial (2016)
- Ta13oo (2018)
- Zuu (2019)
- Melt My Eyez See Your Future (2022)
- Designed by Angels (TBA)[55]
Tours
Headlining
- Bow Down Tour with Deniro Farrar (2014)
- 2055: The U.L.T Experience with SDotBrady, J. K. The Reaper and Allan Kingdom (2015)
- Black Metal Terrorist Tour with Boogie (2016)
- Ta13oo Tour (2018)
- Melt My Eyez Tour (2022)
Supporting
- Joey Bada$$ – World Domination Tour (2015)
- Illegal Civilization – Illegal Civ Cinema Tour with Show Me the Body, Trash Talk (2017)
- Run the Jewels – Run the World Tour (2017)
- A$AP Ferg – Mad Man Tour (2018)
- $uicideboy$ – GreyDay Tour (2019)
- Billie Eilish – When We All Fall Asleep Tour (2019)
- Kid Cudi – To The Moon Tour (2022)
References
- ^ Marcus, Ezra (December 3, 2013). . Vice. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015.
- ^ Alston, Trey (June 7, 2019). "The Rise Of Denzel Curry In Five Songs". MTV. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
But Curry has held on. His latest album, ZUU, shows self-actualized growth, revealing a confident and bold rapper and singer.
- ^ Enos, Morgan (March 12, 2021). "Press Play At Home: Robert Glasper & Denzel Curry Blur Black American Genres With An Urgent Version Of "This Changes Everything"". Grammy Awards. from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
The star keyboardist Robert Glasper [...] leads an ensemble helmed by singer/rapper Denzel Curry[.]
- ^ Trotman, Shiyah (January 14, 2014). "Nostalgia: Denzel Curry Describes That Old Feeling". The Source. The Northstar Group. from the original on June 7, 2015. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ^ Breakfast Club Power 105.1 FM (October 9, 2018). "Denzel Curry Talks Relationship With XXXTentacion, New Album 'TA13OO' + More". YouTube. from the original on October 9, 2018. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
- ^ Sherburne, Philip; Soderberg, Brandon (November 2013). "5 Best New Artists for November '13 – Denzel Curry". Spin. from the original on April 5, 2018. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
- ^ Vogt, Nick (July 5, 2012). . Mishka NYC. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
- ^ a b Drake, David (April 5, 2014). "Who Is Denzel Curry? The Florida Rapper, More Than the Sum of His Influences, is Poised to Break Big". Complex. from the original on July 20, 2014. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
- ^ Castro, Lee (September 6, 2013). "Denzel Curry on SpaceGhostPurrp and Raider Klan: "He Didn't Kick Me Out; I Chose to Leave"". The Village Voice. from the original on August 19, 2014. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
- ^ . DJBooth.net. Archived from the original on October 27, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
- ^ Soderberg, Brandon (May 15, 2014). "Stream Deniro Farrar's Confessional 'Rebirth' EP – Self-declared cult rapper's latest features Lunice and Denzel Curry". Spin. from the original on April 5, 2018. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
- ^ "Dillon Cooper – X:XX". HotNewHipHop. October 20, 2014. from the original on October 23, 2014. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
- ^ "Denzel Curry Rereleases 'Imperial' With Two New Songs - XXL". Xxlmag.com. from the original on July 18, 2017. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
- ^ "Kodak Black, 21 Savage, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty & Denzel Curry's 2016 XXL Freshmen Cypher" – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ "Denzel Curry's '13' EP Now Available to Purchase - XXL". Xxlmag.com. from the original on June 25, 2017. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
- ^ "Denzel Curry Shows His Range on New "Skywalker" Single". PigeonsandPlanes. from the original on April 6, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
- ^ "Denzel Curry Re-Releases '32 Zel' EP With Juicy J Collab - XXL". XXL Mag. from the original on April 6, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
- ^ "ASAP Ferg Teams With Denzel Curry and IDK on New Song "Kristi YamaGucci"". PigeonsandPlanes. from the original on March 17, 2018. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
- ^ "Watch ASAP Ferg Bring Out Denzel Curry, IDK for Insane "Kristi YamaGucci" Performance". PigeonsandPlanes. from the original on March 17, 2018. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
- ^ "Denzel Curry and IDK Tag Team Bruising Track "Uh Huh"". PigeonsandPlanes. from the original on March 17, 2018. Retrieved March 16, 2018.
- ^ "Denzel Curry Sounds the Alarm With Booming New Track "Sumo"". PigeonsandPlanes. from the original on April 6, 2018. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
- ^ Langford, Jackson (February 16, 2019). "The Entire World Is Losing It Over Denzel Curry's Like A Version". musicfeeds.com.au. from the original on February 17, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
- ^ Espinoza, Joshua. "Denzel Curry Announces 'ZUU' Album, Drops New Single "Speedboat"". Complex. from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
- ^ Breihan, Tom (July 16, 2019). "Watch Denzel Curry Make His TV Debut & Show Off His New Haircut On Fallon". Stereogum. from the original on July 16, 2019. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
- ^ Denzel Curry (January 8, 2020). "DENZEL CURRY - 13LOOD 1N + 13LOOD OUT MIXX (FT. GHOSTEMANE, ZILLAKAMI, XAVIER WULF, & AK)". YouTube. from the original on January 7, 2020. Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- ^ Strauss, Matthew (February 7, 2020). "Denzel Curry and Kenny Beats Drop New Album UNLOCKED". Pitchfork. from the original on February 8, 2020. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
- ^ "Madden NFL 21 Soundtrack". August 14, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020 – via EA Sports.
- ^ "$NOT Teams Up With Denzel Curry For New Single "Sangria"". HotNewHipHop. October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
- ^ "Denzel Curry and Kenny Beats Release 'Unlocked 1.5' Project f/ Benny the Butcher, Joey Badass, and More". Complex. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
- ^ Starr, Michael (June 22, 2021). "'The Choe Show' on FX defies explanation". New York Post. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
- ^ Findlay, Mitch (September 17, 2021). "ZillaKami Delivers Experimental New Album "Dog Boy"". HotNewHipHop.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Centeno, Tony M. (January 7, 2022). "Denzel Curry Reveals New Album, Melt My Eyez See Your Future". Miami New Times. from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
- ^ Bloom, Madison (January 24, 2022). "Denzel Curry Announces Tour, Shares Video for New Song "Walkin": Watch". Pitchfork. from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
- ^ Price, Joe (January 24, 2022). "Denzel Curry Shares Cinematic Video for New Song "Walkin"". Complex. from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
- ^ Mahadevan, Tara C. (February 24, 2022). "Denzel Curry Shares Cinematic Video for New Song "Zatoichi" f/ Slowthai". Complex. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
- ^ Minsker, Evan (March 18, 2022). "Denzel Curry Releasing New Album Melt My Eyez See Your Future Next Week". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
- ^ Aron A. (March 21, 2022). "Denzel Curry & T-Pain Team Up For New Single "Troubles"". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ Callas, Brad (March 21, 2022). "Denzel Curry Enlists T-Pain for New Song and Video "Troubles"". Complex. Retrieved March 22, 2022.
- ^ Blanchet, Brenton (March 25, 2022). "Denzel Curry Shares Album 'Melt My Eyez See Your Future' f/ T-Pain, Rico Nasty, 6lack, J.I.D, and More". Complex. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
- ^ "Denzel Curry Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
- ^ "Denzel Curry Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
- ^ "Juneteenth 2022: Freedom Songs". Apple Music. from the original on June 29, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
- ^ Price, Joe (June 10, 2022). "Listen to Apple Music's 'Juneteenth 2022: Freedom Songs' Collection f/ New Music From Denzel Curry, Lupe Fiasco". Complex. from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
- ^ Powell, Jon (June 24, 2022). "Dot Da Genius recruits Kid Cudi, Denzel Curry, and JID for "Talk About Me"". Revolt. from the original on June 26, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
- ^ Griffin, Marc (June 29, 2022). "Watch Denzel Curry Perform On NPR's 'Tiny Desk'". Vibe. from the original on July 1, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
- ^ Zemler, Emily (July 21, 2022). "Denzel Curry Offers a Glimmer of Hope With 'Walkin' on 'Fallon'". Rolling Stone. from the original on July 24, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
- ^ Caraan, Sophie (September 29, 2022). "Denzel Curry's 'MELT MY EYEZ SEE YOUR FUTURE' Extended Edition Features One-Take Performances". Hypebeast. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
- ^ a b Castro, Lee (May 7, 2014). "Denzel Curry on Tasering Death of His Brother, Treon Johnson, in Hialeah Police Incident". Miami New Times. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
- ^ Avalos, Gilma (March 15, 2014). "Family, Friends Mourn Man Fatally Shot With Police Taser". NBC Miami. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
"Tree," as Johnson was known to his friends [...]
- ^ "Hialeah Police Investigating Death of Man Shot With Taser After Alleged Dog Beatings". NBC Miami. March 4, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
- ^ Curran, Shaun (March 25, 2022). "Denzel Curry: 'I've got to fight for people to comprehend that this is my skin tone, but I'm still human'". i. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
- ^ Coleman, C. Vernon II (May 7, 2016). "Denzel Curry Opens Up About His Brother's Death in 'Knotty Head' Documentary". XXL. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
- ^ Cline, Georgette. "Denzel Curry Draws Amazing Self-Portrait for 'ZUU' Album". XXL Magazine. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
- ^ Williams, Aaron (January 15, 2021). "Denzel Curry And Smino Just Found Out They're Related". UPROXX. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ Lafontant, Olivier. "Denzel Curry Demands Your Respect and Undivided Attention". Miami New Times.
External links
- Official website
- Denzel Curry discography at Discogs
- Denzel Curry on SoundCloud