The pgLang Era Starts With Baby Keem

Hip-Hop is evolving there’s no doubt about that, but the deaths of some of this new era’s torch holders like Juice WRLD, XXXTENTACION, and Pop Smoke have stifled the true ushering in of the next era. While 2016 introduced us to a new punk Hip-Hop phase, it wasn’t truly integrated into the new decade as many might’ve expected due to the pandemic. But that doesn’t mean the era hadn’t already made an impact on budding Hip-Hop fans and soon-to-be superstars alike. Punk Hip-Hop was infectious, and it wouldn’t be long before we saw how the punk Hip-Hop era inspired the current state of the genre.

As we get deeper into the 20’s new stars are beginning to emerge in ways not many would have foreseen. With younger artists dominating the airwaves these days, an artist that’s becoming close to undeniable is Baby Keem. A young star from California, in just a few short years the 20-year-old rapper is already a collaborator with Kanye West, Travis Scott, and did we mention he’s Kendrick Lamar’s cousin? It’s clear Baby Keem is up next and Hip-Hop’s most powerful titans have already taken notice. With Kendrick Lamar one album away from being a free agent, he has begun to tease the next phase of his career, or “the pgLang era” as it’s referred to. A management company that helps artists with development and releases that can ultimately be the next leading group in Hip-Hop. The Dave Free and Kendrick Lamar spearheaded pgLang are ready to take on the world, and their first project is Baby Keem, an artist who has been built to carry the torch of Hip-Hop into the next decade.

Kendrick has been teasing his next move for a while. But not many expected him to announce his next album to be his final on the Top Dawg Entertainment imprint, who he’s been with his whole career. But now it all makes sense considering this new venture. So what is PgLang? Self-proclaimed “an at service” coming for all types of artists, Kendrick and former TDE president Dave Free have created this new company to bring a new wave of stories to the world. Between music, film, and other artistic mediums, it seems that pgLang is a creative house that develops a wide array of artists across all mediums and formats in the entertainment and arts space. During the company’s launch in March 2020, Kendrick and Dave Free’s role were defined by pgLang as: “ something deeply personal to them. pgLang is at service to creators and projects that selflessly speak with, and for, the shared experiences that connect us all.” Kendrick has already solidified himself as an outspoken, unorthodox Hip-Hop artist, and between himself and Dave Free’s vision, pgLang could quickly become one of the most exciting and interesting creative organizations to come out of Hip-Hop. And their first offering is Baby Keem.

However, what’s the real expectation for Baby Keem? Is he A list adjacent or still just a bubbling young star? His rise is unique and with it starting right before the pandemic, his energetic music hasn’t been able to benefit from festival performances and opening up on a bigger artist’s tour introducing him to audiences nationwide. Being adjacent to so many superstars, it’s likely that he would’ve secured a spot on an A-lister’s tour. But that doesn’t mean he still hasn’t been able to continue accruing fans, it just begs the question.

The Melodic Blue is the next step in Baby Keem’s career and while no one expected a classic, it is what will carry his career for the next year or so. He’s not going to take attention from Kanye and Drake’s latest releases, so the best-case scenario would be grabbing the people’s attention for even a week. Safe to say his sophomore release earned initial attention, and while Baby Keem fans were satisfied, I don’t feel that Keem hit as many prospective fans as he may have expected. Selling under 60 thousand after the first week, I still believe Keem has the highest potential out of many of his young peers. As of right now, Baby Keem has stayed on his trajectory, but one must question when the expectations for him will deservedly increase.

His superstar qualities and energy-inducing sound are prime for an airwave takeover. Fans and pundits alike have been waiting for the young star to drop his anticipated sophomore album, The Melodic Blue for months. Baby Keem’s ceiling is quite high, but what comes next is making a true full-length album and being able to imprint his sound into the public’s head. All the while dodging the releases of the same titans who have co-signed him, including Drake who reached out to the rapper soon after his debut album. With Keem’s sophomore album just being released, it will take time to see how the fans truly react, but it is important to remember that Keem is trying to make new waves in Hip-Hop. Already telling his fans via Twitter, Keem says he and Kendrick created new languages on the sophomore’s project, the only question left is, do they translate well to the audience’s ear. The Melodic Blue has the potential to be a good project, with a balance of very good songs, and songs unique to himself, and Hip-Hop will have to decide whether they’re ready for this new pgLang sound or not.