Today, rising Atlanta rapper Ken Carson unleashes his hotly anticipated major-label debut album, X. Listen HERE via OPIUM/Interscope Records. The 20-track opus includes the emotional single “The End,” which is accompanied by a striking black-and-white video that trended on YouTube this week.
Equal parts enigmatic and prolific, Carson represents a shift in melodic rap. On X, the 21-year-old continues to carve out his own space in the rager lane, showcasing more versatility than ever before while honing the signature sound that propelled him to prominence. Carson’s artistic growth is on full display across the album, especially on highlights like “New,” which feature the artist’s silky vocals gliding over glitchy beats.
Other tracks such as “Freestyle 1” and “Freestyle 2” showcase Carson’s melodic flow, demonstrating a balance of cadence control and lyrical mastery, while “Gems” strikes a harmonious balance between melodic crooning and iron-cut bars. The Atlanta upstart also exudes confidence and poise on “Murda Musik,” “Nobody,” and current single “The End” — delivering distorted earworms that are simultaneously catchy and affecting.
On X, the spotlight stays on Carson, with the only features coming from his Opium labelmates Destroy Lonely and Homixide Gang. The breakout rapper is coming off the success of his 2021 mixtape Project X, a hedonistic trip that embodies the spirit of youthful nihilism.
In 2020, with plenty of downtime during the Pandemic, Carson began dropping a series of EPs including Boy Barbie and Teen X, the latter of which blew up on SoundCloud and Spotify with viral hits such as “Yale.” In 2021, he shared Project X, which received praise from Pitchfork, HipHopDX, and other tastemaking outlets. Carson opened 2022 with a placement on Yeat’s 2Alive track “Geek High” and continued to build momentum with loosies such as “Teen Bean.”
With X, Carson shows he’s continuing to level up, refusing to be put in a box, and trusting his voice more than ever before.
ABOUT KEN CARSON:
In the Summer of 2021, Ken Car$on released his full-length debut Project X, which marked a turning point in his career. For years, the Atlanta native had sharpened his skills in melodic rap, culminating in a deal with Playboi Carti’s OPIUM Records/Interscope in 2019. However, Ken has evolved rapidly in the past year, is testing new waters, and as he readies his next project, he’s changing his course while still bringing the melodies that he’s known for.
Having made music since he was 13, the Southside Atlanta native eventually cut his first track “Geeked Up,” which showed his promise as a burgeoning young act. The year 2018 marked a turning point in his career, as Ken began his talks with Playboi Carti, inking a deal with Carti’s OPIUM Records in 2019.
As the pandemic raged into 2020, Ken took it as an opportunity to up the ante, releasing a series of EP’s, including Boy Barbie and Teen X, the latter of which featured the colossal “Yale,” which cracked 13.5 million streams on Spotify alone. He even dropped an EP of rarities called Lost Files. Ken kept the momentum going into 2021, re-upping Teen X with Teen X: Relapsed, Lost Files 2, and his critically acclaimed album, Project X, marking a gradual shift in Ken ’s sound, tempering his signature melodic rap delivery with more lyrically driven songs that centered around storytelling.
