The chaotic Zoom session gathered hundreds of DJs and media members, including Billboard Canada, to listen to the track and hear from the rapper herself.
Cardi B
Two nights before its official release, Cardi B gave a first listen of her new single “Enough (Miami)” at an exclusive online listening party. Over Zoom on Wednesday night (Mar. 13), nearly 300 radio hosts, DJs and media — including Billboard Canada — from across the world gathered to hear the “I Like It” rapper talk about the new single.
The new song — which she teased in a minute-long snippet on her Instagram — comes out this Friday Mar. 15. On it, she delivers an aggressive, fast-paced and domineering flow over a drum-heavy beat with enough bass to make your toes curl. With lyrics about her dominance of the rap game and her growth as a musician, it's a club banger we’re sure to hear a lot of over the summer.
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“I hope you guys like it because right now I feel like we’re in a state of music that I don’t know what people like anymore,” she said, introducing the track. “I come from the stripping world, y’know, so I like to make club bangers, I like to make fun music.”
Cardi hasn’t released an album since 2018’s Invasion of Privacy which includes some of her biggest songs, including “Bodak Yellow” and “I Like It.” She’s said that since becoming a mother in 2019, and again in 2021, music has not been her top priority. The pressures of touring combined with a lack of need for money, have led her to focusing on her home life.
Fans have long wondered when the next full-length project would come, and it seems their waiting will soon be coming to an end. The 31-year-old mother of two released a freestyle on Mar. 1, and will now follow with “Enough.” During the online gathering, Cardi spoke about her hiatus and upcoming plan to release an album this summer.
“I took a little break, I came back on social media. I dropped a little freestyle and everything, y’know just to wet my feet. A week later, I’m dropping this single, and the next announcement is not going to be a single, it’s gonna be an album,” she said. “I’m back outside, I’m tired of sh-t holding me back. It’s been six years since I’ve dropped an album, so I’m gonna drop an album this year.”
The event itself was reminiscent of Cardi's chaotic personality. After an hour-long delay, the rapper was on with hundreds of others on Zoom, who often spoke with overlapping praise and questions. As she sat in a Los Angeles home, getting her hair and makeup done, expressions of adoration drowned out her every attempt to talk. She displayed a genuine sense of respect as she sought feedback from those whose opinions she respects. The overwhelming feeling was clear: the people love Cardi B.
“I’m glad that you guys like it and everything, because at the end of the day, the DJs is the people that know the best. You guys move the music, so if you guys like it, I’m really grateful, I’m really thankful,” she said. “And if you don’t like it, tell me, so I can work on my sh-t.”
Where there’s an album, touring follows closely behind. With the upcoming project, Cardi B could be back in Canada to perform for the first time since her 2019 OVO Fest appearance. She was also billed as a headliner at Montreal's Osheaga festival in 2021, but a Covid cancellation prevented her from playing. Could she be back? Either way, new music is most definitely on its way.
AP Dhillon and Stormzy
The Punjabi-Canadian artist has released a confident new track with U.K. grime star Stormzy.
Punjabi-Canadian star AP Dhillon has dropped a new collaboration with UK grime star Stormzy. The suave single arrives ahead of Dhillon's debut Coachella performance on Sunday, April 14.
"This what happens when you mix Punjab Royalty with South London's finest," Stormzy announces in the intro to "Problems Over Peace." Dhillon enters with a cool vocal: "We live by our instincts and not by the book," Dhillon sings in Punjabi.
Accompanied by sleek guitar riffs and soft high hats, the two artists assert their power as two leading artists in global hip-hop scenes with major momentum.
Dhillon will play both weekends at Coachella this month, and is joined on the lineup by fellow Punjabi-Canadian artist NAV. Their performances follow last year's historic set by Diljit Dosanjh, the first all-Punjabi performance at the major festival.
Dhillon is already a star in his own right — his songs often perform amongst Spotify's top tracks in India, and he performed his first Canadian shows at arenas. The Stormzy collab and Coachella performances will only increase the artist's growing profile, and contribute to Punjabi music's growing popularity in North American and U.K. markets.
Artists like Dhillon and recent Juno-winner Karan Aujla are landing placements on all-genre charts and playing increasingly high-profile events, as the Punjabi Wave continues to swell.
Check out the full Coachella lineup here and here are the details on how to tune into the livestream.
