WHAT IT IS: Hailing from Miami, Dominican artist DaniLeigh began her career as a dancer for Pharrell, Daddy Yankee and Nelly Furtado before becoming a buzzworthy artist in the urban music scene. After appearing in a video for her late mentor, Prince, at just 18 years old, she dropped her breakthrough single, “Lil Bebe,” which has garnered over 450m global streams. Last summer, DaniLeigh’s take on Drake’s #InMyFeelingsDance challenge went viral, raking in 10m+ views, earning her a co-sign from the superstar—and she’s at it again with the #ToosieSlideChallenge. Following her 2018 debut, The Plan, DaniLeigh’s “Easy (Remix)” f/Chris Brown earned her a 2019 BET Soul Train Award nomination for Best Dance Performance and achieved RIAA platinum certification. The 25-year-old is gearing up for the release of Loved a Liar later this year.
ALBUM: Movie
RELEASE DATE: Summer 2020
SINGLE: “Levi High” f/DaBaby
TV: BET, Late Night With Seth Myers
LIVE: Previously toured with J. Cole, Big Sean, Teyana Taylor and Jeremih
INTERNET: 5.6m+ monthly Spotify listeners; 1m+ YouTube subscribers, “Levi High” amassed 7m+ views, peaked #6 on the Trending Chart; 15m+ global audio and video streams; 2.4m+ Instagram followers
RADIO: “Lil Bebe” and “Easy (Remix)” Top 15 at Urban
PRESS: BET, ELLE, Complex, more
BOOKING: Mike G, Chris Jordan, Daniel McCartney & Tessie Lammle/UTA
PUBLISHING: UMPG
MANAGEMENT: International Hub Records, LLC

WHAT IT IS: Carrying Atlanta’s ever-changing sound, 25-year-old Kenny Mason made an exceptional introduction to the music scene with the release of his aptly titled single, “Hit,” exhibiting his technical rap skills in an unorthodox song structure. Mason’s unapologetic approach in his self-released debut album, Angelic Hoodrat, serves as an honest and reflective glimpse into the mind of a dynamic artist who’s determined to leave his mark on hip-hop’s narrative. The versatile 14-track project, which includes his rock-inspired follow-up single “Metal Wings”—dropped with a groundbreaking visual directed by Nasser Boulaich—showcases a firm grasp on his craft and boundary-pushing abilities.
ALBUM: Angelic Hoodrat
RELEASE DATE: 4/15
SINGLE: “Metal Wings”
LIVE: Forthcoming live shows and festival dates
INTERNET: 250k+ monthly Spotify listeners, 3.3m+ streams on “Hit”; 40k+ Instagram followers
PRESS: Complex, Pitchfork, XXL, OTW, HYPEBEAST, Elevator (“With a catchy hook that reels the listener in then switches up his flow unexpectedly, it kind of feels like what a knockout punch from Tyson would be like”), DJ Booth (“Kenny Mason’s debut is a deep duality.”), BrooklynVegan, more
BOOKING: Cheryl Paglierani, Jonathan Briks & Adam Sylvester/UTA
PUBLISHING: Self-published
MANAGEMENT: Aditya Pamidi

WHAT IT IS: For over a decade, Florida rapper Dee Watkins, a.k.a. Detrone Leon Watkins, has been making a name for himself in his home state. After breaking through on SoundCloud with “Down for Me” alongside a string of singles, Watkins solidified his presence in the hip-hop scene when he released his 2019 debut album, Problem Child, which includes the single “Hell Raiser.” Crafting unique rhythms, stellar melodies and captivating lyrics, Watkins exhibits a pointed yet smooth flow in his follow-up album, Chosen One. The 12-track project boasts the Young Dolph remix of his breakout single, “Bad Ass Jit.”
ALBUM: Chosen One
RELEASE
DATE: 4/9
SINGLE: “Bad Ass Jit (Remix)” f/Young Dolph
INTERNET: 16m+ streams across Apple Music and Spotify on “Bad Ass Jit,” 648k+ monthly Spotify listeners; 18m+ YouTube video views on single; 145k Instagram followers
PRESS: Pitchfork, Complex’s “Rappers to Watch 2020” list, XXL, Lyrical Lemonade (“[Watkins] cemented himself as one of the leading up-and coming-rappers out of the entire Southeast’s talent-laden scene”), more
BOOKING: Jon Briks & Jeremy Holgersen/UTA
MANAGEMENT: Reco/Short Fuse