Ken Carson
Kenyatta Lee Frazier Jr. (born April 11, 2000), known professionally as Ken Carson, is an American rapper and record producer. He signed with Playboi Carti's record label Opium, an imprint of Interscope Records in 2019 to release his debut studio album, Project X (2021). Despite generally mixed to unfavorable critical reception, its songs "Rock N Roll" and "Run + Ran" gained popularity on the platform TikTok. His second album, X (2022) saw continued unfavorable reception, but became his first entry on the Billboard 200.[2] His third studio album, A Great Chaos (2023) reached number 11 on the chart and saw a critical incline.[3]
Ken Carson | |
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Carson in 2021 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Kenyatta Lee Frazier Jr. |
| Also known as |
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| Born | April 11, 2000 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Discography | Ken Carson discography |
| Years active | 2015–present |
| Labels |
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| Formerly of | |
| Website | kencarson |
Carson is closely affiliated with Opium labelmate, frequent collaborator, and fellow Georgia native Destroy Lonely.[3]
Career
2015–2019: Beginnings
Carson initially joined 808 Mafia in 2015 as a rapper after meeting fellow record producer TM88,[4] 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.[5][6]
2020–2022: Teen X, Project X and X
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.[7][8] In February 2022, he appeared as a guest on the track "Gëek high" off American rapper Yeat's album, 2 Alive.[9] He released his second studio album X on July 8, 2022.[10] It peaked at number 115 on the Billboard 200.[2]
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.[11][12][13] 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.[14]
2023–present: A Great Chaos
Carson released the single "I Need U" on February 14, 2023.[15] On May 5, 2023, Carson featured on Destroy Lonely's debut studio album, If Looks Could Kill, on the song "Money & Sex".[16][17] In June 2023, Carson produced the song "x2" from Lil Uzi Vert's third studio album, Pink Tape.[18] 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;[19] three days later, nearly the entire album leaked online after several tracks were shared on a Discord server.[20] 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).[21]
Musical style
Carson's musical style has been described as "[having] electronic production that is energetic in nature" and having "focused flows."[22] 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.[8]
Discography
Studio albums
- Project X (2021)
- X (2022)
- A Great Chaos (2023)
EP's
- Boy Barbie (2018)
- Teen X (2020)
- Teen X: Relapsed (2021)
Lost Files
- Lost Files (Original) (2021)
- Lost Files 2 (2021)
- Lost Files 3 (2022)
- Lost Files 4 (2023)
Tours
Headlining
- The X Man Tour (2022)
Co-headlining
- Antagonist Tour[23] – (with Playboi Carti, Destroy Lonely and Homixide Gang) (TBA)
References
- ^ "Ken Carson, Destroy Lonely come to Fonda". Daily Trojan. September 7, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ a b "Billboard 200 Week of July 23, 2022". Billboard. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
- ^ a b @billboardcharts (October 23, 2023). "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200..." (Tweet). Retrieved October 24, 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Ken Carson (Friday)". Creative Loafing. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ "Ken Carson Is a Leader of the New School". Complex. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
- ^ "Playboi Carti Gives Rare Interview on New Music, Fatherhood, More". XXL. August 17, 2022.
- ^ "Ken Car$on drops long-awaited debut album 'Project X'". Our Generation Music. July 23, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
- ^ a b "Ken Car$on: Project X". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ "Gëek high (feat. Ken Carson)". Spotify. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
- ^ "Stream Ken Carson's New Album 'X' f/ Destroy Lonely and Homixide Gang". Complex. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ "SoFaygo and Ken Carson Drop Video for "Hell Yeah"". Complex. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
- ^ "SoFaygo & Ken Carson Bring Undeniable Energy On "Hell Yeah"". HotNewHipHop. October 21, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
- ^ "Taylor Swift, Lil Uzi Vert, Carly Rae Jepsen, and All the Songs You Need to Know This Week". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
- ^ "XTENDED by Ken Carson". October 31, 2022 – via music.apple.com.
- ^ "Here's what went down at Ken Carson's sold-out London show". Crack Magazine. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
- ^ "Destroy Lonely's 'If Looks Could Kill': Everything We Know So Far". UPROXX. May 2, 2023. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
- ^ "Destroy Lonely's 'If Looks Could Kill' is a beacon of triumphant darkness". Our Generation Music. May 16, 2023. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
- ^ Bras Nevares, Gabriel (July 3, 2023). "Lil Uzi Vert Thanks Ken Carson For Producing "x2" Off Of "Pink Tape"". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
- ^ Armstrong, Sam (October 8, 2023). "Ken Carson Announces New Album A Great Chaos". uDiscoverMusic. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
- ^ Zamora, José (October 9, 2023). "Opium's Ken Carson Has New Album Leaked Online". Raptology. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
- ^ Kurzweil, Lucas (October 14, 2023). "Ken Carson Introduces 'A Great Chaos' With Action Packed Concert at Silo in Brooklyn". NYS Music. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
- ^ "Ken Carson Makes A Statement With New Album "X"". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ "Tour". Playboi Carti. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
External links
- Ken Carson discography at Discogs