Bktherula, aka Brooklyn Candida Rodriguez, got her start on SoundCloud. With her first tracks, “Lightweight” and “Faygo”, she showed off her good flow and trap direction, but it was with her following single she started to garner true recognition.
“LEFT RIGHT” became a hit. The dyer production with gaps between claps and a circling, high-pitched synth and the forever iconic line of, “Hoes on me, left and right,” took Bktherula to a new level, all at the extremely young age of 16.
Bktherula’s SoundCloud Success
Even though she loved a bass booming in the background and hi-hats clicking away, she wanted to expand into more singing avenues, looking to expand her sound.
Her Forward-Moving Discography
The singles for her debut album, “Love Santana”, still had that hard trap production, but saw Bktherula go for more R&B vocals and longer vocal sections.
“Tweakin’ Together” would be her first “TikTok” hit, with fans adoring the heavy bass and more dreamscape production she brought into the song.
Other singles like “C4” have her candidly singing without shame, and the vocal effects and layering of her voice create a more calm, but still fun song atmosphere.
Bktherula’s debut album “Love Santana”, via Tidal
“Nirvana”, her next album, was a return to the true trap sound for Bktherula. “MIND FUCK” has her with an extraordinary bass, hi-hats, a string loop, and aggressive, confrontational, and in-your-face lyrics.
“okok/depressing” was the next true hit that was aided by good social media circulation. The warpy and psychedelic production and more subdued percussion showcase how truly diverse she was growing. Digital Nas even came in for her first song with a feature, starting an amazing repertoire with collaborations.
This endlessly amazing list of collaborations has included many artists:
Matt Ox
Rico Nasty
Ski Mask the Slump God
Destroy Lonely
Youngboy Never Broke Again
Cash Cobain
Kanye West
JID
Her next single would be one of her biggest to date, and once again, it did rounds on social media. “Santanny” has eclipsed over 20 million streams, and has a more jingly production, with Bktherula delivering a repeating verse pattern that is instantly catchy.
This was for her sophomore album, “LOVE BLACK”, which showed an improved look from her first album, with more experimentation in the trap beats being present with unique instrumentation.
Bktherula Finding Ultitmate Comfort in her “LVL” Albums
It was at this point that her trap sounds really took off in a more experimental direction, mixed in her dabbles in R&B songwriting, both “LVL5 P1” and “LVL5 P2”.
This “LVL5” album run has truly demonstrated the incredible development Bktherula has been through. More moody and intimate songs like “BELIEVE” are countered by more positively abrasive songs like “PSSYONFT” on “P1”.
The whirling, spacey song of “BOI” is matched by the energetic and somewhat ominous “TATTI” on “P2”. Releasing this year, “P2” covers Bktherula’s almost entire discography, from trap, to R&B, to straight rap, it really is a powerful statement.
She even released a small acoustic EP titled “Love Nirvana”, a conjoining of the titles of her first two albums, including acoustic versions of “Summer”, “Uh Huh”, and her hit “Tweakin’ Together”.
She is currently on her “I Just Wanna Be Me” tour, continuing to rap about whatever she wants, whether it is her sexuality, people not giving her respect, or the beautiful seasons. She will continue to turn heads for her demanding and unique trap sound, being whoever she wants to be.
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