{{Short description|Umbrella term for hip-hop associated with Internet culture}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2025}} {{Infobox music genre | name = Internet rap | other_names = * Online rap<ref>{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=2025-08-27 |title=Inside the Online “Indie” Music Boom |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/inside-the-online-indie-music-boom/ |access-date=2026-02-28 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref> * blog rap<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |date=2022-11-18 |title=The Ephemeral Life of Blog Rap |url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/lists/blog-cloud-rap-list |access-date=2025-07-03 |website=Bandcamp Daily}}</ref> (early) | image = | caption = | stylistic_origins = {{hlist|Hip hop|trap}} | cultural_origins = Late 2000s – 2010s,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/rise-of-mumble-rap-lyricism-2016-7625631/ |title=The Rise of ‘Mumble Rap’: Did Lyricism Take a Hit in 2016? |work=Billboard |date=21 December 2016 |author=Kathy Iandoli |access-date=30 June 2025 |archive-date=2 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250802231828/https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/rise-of-mumble-rap-lyricism-2016-7625631/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Internet communities and social media platforms such as Myspace and SoundCloud | instruments = {{hlist|Vocals (auto-tune<ref>{{cite web |url=https://bongminesentertainment.com/mumble-rap-hiphop-culture/ |title=5 Ways How Mumble Rap or Non Lyrical Rap has Influenced Urban Pop Culture |first=Emily |last=Johnson |date=7 May 2018 |newspaper=Bong Mines Entertainment |access-date=29 January 2019 |archive-date=2 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190302024503/https://www.bongminesentertainment.com/mumble-rap-hiphop-culture/ |url-status=live }}</ref>)|Drum machine (Roland TR-808)|Synthesizers|Samples}} | subgenres = {{hlist|Cloud rap|emo rap|phonk|mumble rap|sigilkore|digicore|jerk|plugg|pluggnb|scam rap|rage|lowend|crushed trap}} | regional_scenes = Global, notably the United States, the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Argentina | local_scenes = {{hlist|Atlanta|Chicago|Los Angeles|Stockholm}} | other_topics = * Internet rap collectives * Internet music * underground rap * alternative hip-hop }}
'''Internet rap''' (also known as '''online rap''' or originally '''blog rap''') is a style of hip-hop that emerged in the late 2000s, initially spreading through the online blogosphere, and early social media platforms like Myspace and later Tumblr, as well as mixtape-sharing site DatPiff.
Internet rap encompasses various online styles and aesthetics deeply intertwined with internet culture, memes, and digital communities. Unlike traditional hip-hop, internet rap is characterized by music primarily influenced by the internet and born out of online communities. Artists often favor online music distribution platforms such as SoundCloud, with songs frequently promoted and shared through streaming services like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What Does 'Underground Rap' Mean Today? |url=https://www.complex.com/music/a/andre-gee/underground-rap-evolution |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Complex |language=en |archive-date=5 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240605213610/https://www.complex.com/music/a/andre-gee/underground-rap-evolution |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Dazed |date=2025-02-28 |title=9 underground artists leading the UK's rap revolution |url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/66191/1/dazed-uk-rappers-cover-spring-2025-victory-lap-yt-niko-b-bxks-jim-legxacy-kwes-e |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Dazed |language=en |archive-date=24 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250724195724/https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/66191/1/dazed-uk-rappers-cover-spring-2025-victory-lap-yt-niko-b-bxks-jim-legxacy-kwes-e |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":032">{{Cite web |last= |date=2023-08-08 |title=Pitchfork Staffers on Their Most Formative Rap Albums |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/pitchfork-staffers-on-their-most-formative-rap-albums/ |access-date=2024-10-25 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=6 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250806142337/https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/pitchfork-staffers-on-their-most-formative-rap-albums/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
Though many internet rappers achieve mainstream success, artists within this label have been described as alternative or underground rap. The scene was originally based primarily on trap music but later gave rise to several Internet music microgenres and subcultures.
== Etymology and characteristics == According to music journalist Alphonse Pierre, writing for ''Pitchfork'', the term "internet rappers" was once used as a dismissive label but later popularized by the "SoundCloud generation".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pierre |first=Alphonse |date=2019-02-27 |title=How Rap's SoundCloud Generation Changed the Music Business Forever |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/how-raps-soundcloud-generation-changed-the-music-business-forever/ |access-date=2026-04-06 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref> Writing for ''The Guardian'', journalist Emilie Friedlander stated that during the blog era, bloggers "were trawling the internet to uncover the next great bedroom producer, internet rapper or hyper-specific musical trend."<ref name="fried192" /> Adding that, internet rap shared the "collagist, hyper-referential approach to sound" of the Internet microgenre chillwave.<ref name="fried192">{{cite news |last1=Friedlander|first1=Emilie|title=Chillwave: a momentary microgenre that ushered in the age of nostalgia|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/aug/21/chillwave-microgenre-nostalgia-pop|work=The Guardian|date=August 19, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sundaresan |first=Mano |last2=Press-Reynolds |first2=Kieran |last3=Lafontant |first3=Olivier |date=2023-12-31 |title=BEST INTERNET RAP 2023 |url=https://nobells.blog/best-internet-rap-2023/ |access-date=2026-05-07 |website=No Bells |language=en-US}}</ref>
== History ==
=== 1990s–2000s: Forerunners === During the mid-to late 1990s, Canibus became the first rapper to make references to the Internet in hip-hop. On the track "DJ Clue Freestyle" released in 1997, Canibus stated, "I'll battle you on the net, I'll battle you in the flesh."<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":10" /> He later created his own website, known as "www.canibus.com", which was promoted alongside his debut album ''Can-I-Bus'' in 1998.<ref name=":9" /> In 2002, he launched "MicClub.net", named after his second album ''Mic Club: The Curriculum'', where he shared music, lyrics, and interacted with his fans, which made him one of the earliest rappers to own a personal website and use the internet as a creative and promotional platform.<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |last=Millard |first=Drew |title=Before there were internet rappers, there was Canibus |url=https://theoutline.com/post/6977/canibus-internet-mic-club |access-date=2025-10-18 |website=The Outline |language=en |archive-date=14 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250814124043/https://theoutline.com/post/6977/canibus-internet-mic-club |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Baker |first=Soren |date=1998-09-06 |title=THE CONTENDER |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-sep-06-ca-19832-story.html |access-date=2025-10-18 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 1998, Florida rapper Trick Daddy also made reference to the internet and its visual aesthetics, with the release of his album ''www.thug.com'', which was the URL of his official website.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pierre |first=Alphonse |date=2022-09-09 |title=12 Songs That Will Make You Grateful for Florida's Expansive Current Rap Scene |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/12-songs-that-will-make-you-grateful-for-floridas-expansive-current-rap-scene/ |access-date=2025-10-18 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=28 May 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250528234426/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/12-songs-that-will-make-you-grateful-for-floridas-expansive-current-rap-scene/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Nosnitsky |first=Andrew |date=2023-08-09 |title=How the Bay Area became a rap incubator with a chip on its shoulder |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/08/09/1192465852/hip-hop-50-bay-area |access-date=2025-10-18 |work=NPR |language=en |archive-date=24 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250924172900/https://www.npr.org/2023/08/09/1192465852/hip-hop-50-bay-area |url-status=live }}</ref>
=== 2000s–2010s: Blog era === {{multiple image | perrow = 2 | total_width = 350 | image1 = Lil Wayne (23513397583).jpg | image2 = Soulja Boy Tell 'Em on YouTube Live.jpg | footer = Rappers Lil Wayne and Soulja Boy were early influential adopters of the Internet and social media in the 2000s }} In the late 2000s, influential rappers like Lil Wayne and Soulja Boy were the first to embrace social media, with the latter being credited as the first rapper to have a Twitter account.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Soulja Boy Responds to Lil B Saying Wiz Khalifa Was the F... |url=https://www.complex.com/music/a/j-rose/soulja-boy-calls-out-lil-b-for-saying-wiz-khalifa-was-first-rapper-he-saw-on-twitter |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=Complex |language=en |archive-date=30 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250630150605/https://www.complex.com/music/a/j-rose/soulja-boy-calls-out-lil-b-for-saying-wiz-khalifa-was-first-rapper-he-saw-on-twitter |url-status=live }}</ref> At the time, the Internet was a novelty that hadn't yet been implemented into the music industry. Artists such as Soulja Boy who were growing up with the early stages of social media used it for their image.
Wayne and Soulja Boy helped redefine hip-hop through their approaches to online distribution, as their popularity grew largely from freely sharing songs through online music videos, demonstrating to the hip hop music industry that uploading your songs for free on the internet could effectively build a fan base and generate profit, which was an unpopular idea at the time. Writer Kyle Kramer of ''Vice'', stated:<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kramer |first=Kyle |date=7 November 2017 |title=Lil Wayne Changed the Internet Forever |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/lil-wayne-changed-the-internet-forever-v24n8/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=VICE |language=en-US}}</ref>
{{Blockquote|text=[...] the lawlessness of the internet matched the disorder of Wayne’s music and the frenzy with which he was working. He was incredible precisely because he wasn’t following a formula for success, because his best verse might be a throwaway two-minute freestyle over someone else’s beat. Just like hip-hop had done in its earliest years, just as the internet itself seemed to do, Lil Wayne in 2007 promised creativity unbounded by any rules.}}
Internet rap music was originally referred to as "blog rap" due to hip-hop artists in the 2000s primarily distributing their music through the early online blogosphere, artists in other genres would also proliferate through blogs which led to the emergence of early online music scenes like blog rock and bloghouse.<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-12-05 |title=10 Blog Era Mixtapes That Deserve To Be Released On Streaming Services – HipHopDX |url=https://hiphopdx.com/news/blog-era-mixtapes-deserve-streaming-release/ |access-date=2025-07-03 |language=en-US |archive-date=3 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250703082105/https://hiphopdx.com/news/blog-era-mixtapes-deserve-streaming-release/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Early internet rappers operated primarily on the early social media platform Myspace<ref>{{cite web |last= |first= |title=MySpace Played a Big Role in Hip-Hop History; Now Much of That Record Is Gone |url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/mueller-report-saving-lives-in-mozambique-new-zealand-s-haka-myspace-megafail-cory-doctorow-and-more-1.5066299/myspace-played-a-big-role-in-hip-hop-history-now-much-of-that-record-is-gone-1.5066312 |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=CBC Radio |archive-date=30 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250630150605/https://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/mueller-report-saving-lives-in-mozambique-new-zealand-s-haka-myspace-megafail-cory-doctorow-and-more-1.5066299/myspace-played-a-big-role-in-hip-hop-history-now-much-of-that-record-is-gone-1.5066312 |url-status=live }}</ref> as well as mixtape-sharing site DatPiff,<ref name="forbes">{{cite magazine |author=Michael Humphrey |date=August 4, 2011 |title=Datpiff: How Love For Mixtapes Grew To Lil Wayne Levels |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelhumphrey/2011/08/04/datpiff-how-love-for-mixtapes-grew-to-lil-wayne-levels/#2f88af151ab8 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181130113731/https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelhumphrey/2011/08/04/datpiff-how-love-for-mixtapes-grew-to-lil-wayne-levels/#2f88af151ab8 |archive-date=November 30, 2018 |access-date=November 29, 2018 |magazine=Forbes}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |author=Meaghan Garvey |date=December 16, 2014 |title=The Minds Behind Music's Biggest Tech Advances in the Last 10 Years |url=https://www.complex.com/music/2014/12/the-minds-behind-musics-biggest-tech-advances-in-the-last-10-years/marcus-frasier-founder-ceo-of-datpiff |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181130113215/https://www.complex.com/music/2014/12/the-minds-behind-musics-biggest-tech-advances-in-the-last-10-years/marcus-frasier-founder-ceo-of-datpiff |archive-date=November 30, 2018 |access-date=November 29, 2018 |magazine=Complex}}</ref> which became an influential hub for the movement. Artists like Soulja Boy drew influence from early 2000s hip-hop subgenres such as crunk and snap rap.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 January 2014 |title=The Strange Cult of Lil B |url=https://www.vice.com/da/article/why-im-not-going-to-listen-to-lil-bs-new-mixtape/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=VICE |language=da-DK |archive-date=30 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250630150605/https://www.vice.com/da/article/why-im-not-going-to-listen-to-lil-bs-new-mixtape/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=19 March 2019 |title=Myspace Lost A Ton Of Songs And Some True Hip-Hop History |url=https://uproxx.com/music/myspace-loses-music-hip-hop-loses-history/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=UPROXX |language=en-US |archive-date=30 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250630150605/https://uproxx.com/music/myspace-loses-music-hip-hop-loses-history/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Garvey |first=Meaghan |date=2015-07-09 |title=The Influencer: A Decade of Soulja Boy |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/9682-the-influencer-a-decade-of-soulja-boy/ |access-date=2025-07-06 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=27 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250827055536/https://pitchfork.com/features/article/9682-the-influencer-a-decade-of-soulja-boy/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":10">{{Cite web |title=Rap 1.0: A History of the Early Hip Hop Internet |url=https://daily.redbullmusicacademy.com/2013/05/rap-10-a-hip-hop-internet-history |access-date=2025-08-19 |website=daily.redbullmusicacademy.com |language=en}}</ref> Artists such as Asher Roth, B.o.B, Kid Cudi, Mickey Factz, Wale, and Charles Hamilton who released music and gained attention primarily through music blogs stood out amongst their contemporaries.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lyons |first=Patrick |date=2023-03-30 |title=The "Internet Rapper" Phenomenon |url=https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/462605-the-internet-rapper-phenomenon-news |access-date=2025-10-18 |website=HotNewHipHop |language=en}}</ref>[[File:Lil B Nuemos 2012.jpg|thumb|Lil B, credited as "the godfather of internet rap".|left]]By 2009, influential rapper Lil B<ref>{{cite web |last= |first= |title=The Mysterious Figure That Is Lil B The Based God |url=https://forthespeakers.com/f/the-mysterious-figure-that-is-lil-b-%E2%80%9Cthe-based-god%E2%80%9D |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=For the Speakers}}</ref> emerged, with his success largely linked to internet virality and an embrace of broader online trends, while Lil B and his producer Clams Casino have been credited with pioneering the trap-based subgenre of cloud rap.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kramer |first=Kyle |date=2016-06-03 |title=Collect This Rare Clams Casino and Lil B Interview About the New Clams Casino Album '32 Levels' |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/clams-casino-lil-b-interview-32-levels/ |access-date=2025-07-29 |website=VICE |language=en-US |archive-date=23 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250123093612/https://www.vice.com/en/article/clams-casino-lil-b-interview-32-levels/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=Cloud rap |date=2025-07-24 |work=Wikipedia |url=https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cloud_rap&oldid=1302344684 |access-date=2025-07-29 |language=en |archive-date=17 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250917132004/https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1302344684&title=Cloud_rap |url-status=live }}</ref> His popularity inspired a generation of internet-based rappers who drew influence from online spaces, movements, memes, and digital culture.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kramer |first=Kyle |date=10 January 2017 |title=A Year of Lil Wayne: Lil Wayne and Lil B |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/a-year-of-lil-wayne-lil-wayne-and-lil-b/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=VICE |language=en-US |archive-date=23 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250123094330/https://www.vice.com/en/article/a-year-of-lil-wayne-lil-wayne-and-lil-b/ |url-status=live }}</ref> He has influenced multiple other rappers,<ref name=":0" /> with record producer Metro Boomin stating on Twitter: "Lil B is responsible for a lot of careers man. A true hip hop pioneer".
Lil B has been credited as "the godfather of internet rap," and influencing a whole generation of online rap artists.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=All Your Favorite Rappers Love Lil B |url=https://www.thefader.com/2017/08/17/rappers-love-lil-b-tweets-black-ken |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=The FADER |language=en |archive-date=30 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250630193435/https://www.thefader.com/2017/08/17/rappers-love-lil-b-tweets-black-ken |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=A Decade Of Lil B: The Godfather Of Internet Rap Remains Well Ahead Of His Time - Okayplayer |url=https://www.okayplayer.com/originals/decade-lil-b-godfather-internet-rap-constantly-ahead-time.html |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=www.okayplayer.com |language=en}}</ref> British magazine ''Dazed'' stated "he's the father of 'Internet rap' and probably follows you on Twitter".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dazed |date=2017-10-11 |title=Lil B has been banned from Facebook for 'hate speech' |url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/37721/1/lil-b-has-been-banned-from-facebook-for-hate-speech |access-date=2026-04-09 |website=Dazed |language=en}}</ref>
=== Early 2010s: Cloud rap & Internet rap collectives === {{See also|Cloud rap|Underground rap|Internet rap collectives}}
By the early 2010s, influential Internet rap collectives such as Odd Future,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fisher |first=Gus |date=15 June 2018 |title=How Odd Future Influenced The Current Rap Landscape |url=https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/119059-how-odd-future-influenced-the-current-rap-landscape-news |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=HotNewHipHop |language=en |archive-date=25 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250725084253/https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/119059-how-odd-future-influenced-the-current-rap-landscape-news |url-status=live }}</ref> Brockhampton,<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 March 2021 |title=Brockhampton and Danny Brown get weird in 'Buzzcut' |url=https://districtmagazine.ie/news/brockhampton-and-danny-brown-get-weird-in-buzzcut/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=District Magazine |language=en-US |archive-date=25 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250725084244/https://districtmagazine.ie/news/brockhampton-and-danny-brown-get-weird-in-buzzcut/ |url-status=live }}</ref> A$AP Mob, Metro Zu,<ref name=":032"/> 88Rising,<ref name=":12" /> Soulection,<ref name=":12" /> Ruby Yacht,<ref name=":12" /> Pro Era,<ref name=":12" /> and Raider Klan gained prominence.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Matson |first=Andrew |date=9 March 2020 |title=Bragging rights don't mean shit: An oral history of Raider Klan |url=https://www.passionweiss.com/2020/03/09/bragging-rights-dont-mean-shit-an-oral-history-of-raider-klan/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=Passion of the Weiss |archive-date=17 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200317154654/https://www.passionweiss.com/2020/03/09/bragging-rights-dont-mean-shit-an-oral-history-of-raider-klan/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":12">{{Cite web |date=2019-12-20 |title=8 Most Influential Internet Rap Collectives of the 2010s |url=https://djbooth.net/features/2019-12-20-odd-future-asap-mob-internet-rap-collectives-most-influence-of-2010s/ |access-date=2026-04-09 |website=DJBooth |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2012, ''The Guardian'' credited collectives such as Taylor Gang, A$AP Mob, Black Hippy, Pro Era, YMCMB (Young Money), Most Dope, Maybach Music, Odd Future and Raider Klan as bringing back the "hip-hop crew."<ref name="Guardian">{{cite news |last1=Yates|first1=Kieran|title=Return of the hip-hop crew|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/aug/30/return-of-the-hip-hop-crew|website=The Guardian|date=30 August 2012|accessdate=15 February 2020|archive-date=15 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200215102537/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/aug/30/return-of-the-hip-hop-crew|url-status=live}}</ref> Artists continued to proliferate on blog-related websites like Tumblr, and distributed music through SoundCloud, YouTube, and Spotify. Other influential figures included Danny Brown,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Danny Brown (US) |url=https://www.primaverasound.com/en/artist/danny-brown |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=www.primaverasound.com |archive-date=11 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411063346/https://www.primaverasound.com/en/artist/danny-brown |url-status=live }}</ref> Tyler, the Creator, and Yung Lean.<ref name=":1" /> The term hipster hop would also emerge to describe some artists from this time period who were making internet rap reflective of hipster culture, applied to artists such as The Cool Kids and Kid Cudi.<ref name="ChicagoReader">{{cite web |author=Miles Raymer |date=June 5, 2008 |title=Don't Hate Them Because They're Hip: One of Chicago's hottest scenes has attracted the inevitable backlash. |url=http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/dont-hate-them-because-theyre-hip/Content?oid=1109681 |access-date=August 17, 2011 |publisher=The Chicago Reader |archive-date=3 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303203651/http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/dont-hate-them-because-theyre-hip/Content?oid=1109681 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="RapTV">{{cite web |date=March 4, 2021 |title=Rappers Breaking Boundaries In The Hipster Hop Scene |url=https://raptv.com/history/rappers-breaking-boundaries-in-the-hipster-hop-scene/ |access-date=August 12, 2022 |publisher=RapTV |archive-date=3 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231003132354/https://raptv.com/history/rappers-breaking-boundaries-in-the-hipster-hop-scene/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Preira">{{cite web |author=Matt Preira |date=May 10, 2011 |title=Five Key Moments in the Chronology of Hipster Hop |url=https://www.miaminewtimes.com/music/five-key-moments-in-the-chronology-of-hipster-hop-6484235 |access-date=August 17, 2011 |publisher=Miami New Times}}</ref>
Around this time, the broader internet rap scene began to amass wider audiences, following the online virality of Lil B, with rappers also drawing influence from Waka Flocka Flame, Gucci Mane and Juicy J.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Garvey |first=Meaghan |date=25 February 2025 |title=A Rare Interview With Bladee, the Mystic Oracle of Internet Rap |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/cover-story/bladee-interview/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=1 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250701133546/https://pitchfork.com/features/cover-story/bladee-interview/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Soderberg |first=Brandon |date=16 May 2013 |title=No Trivia's Rap Songs of the Week: Vampire Weekend Prove Their Rap-Nerd Bonafides |url=https://www.spin.com/2013/05/no-trivias-rap-songs-of-the-week-vampire-weekend-fergie-pusha-t-eve-juicy-j-q-tip-great-gatsby/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=SPIN |language=en-US |archive-date=15 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240415031343/https://www.spin.com/2013/05/no-trivias-rap-songs-of-the-week-vampire-weekend-fergie-pusha-t-eve-juicy-j-q-tip-great-gatsby/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Other pivotal influences included Chicago's Chief Keef<ref>{{Cite web |last=Aku |first=Timmhotep |date=4 July 2012 |title=The Exploitation of Chicago's Chief Keef |url=https://www.theroot.com/the-exploitation-of-chicagos-chief-keef-1790892249/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=The Root |language=en-US |archive-date=21 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121212614/https://www.theroot.com/the-exploitation-of-chicagos-chief-keef-1790892249 |url-status=live }}</ref> who helped popularize and pioneer drill music, with his style significantly influencing both mainstream trap music and online rap scenes.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=7 March 2017 |title=Five artists that shook up hip hop in the internet age |url=https://districtmagazine.ie/news/five-artists-that-shook-up-hip-hop-in-the-internet-age/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=District Magazine |language=en-US |archive-date=24 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240624005801/https://districtmagazine.ie/news/five-artists-that-shook-up-hip-hop-in-the-internet-age/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Soderberg |first=Brandon |date=4 January 2013 |title=No Trivia's Friday Five: Jay-Z and Chief Keef Beat On, Boats Against the Current |url=https://www.spin.com/2013/01/no-trivias-friday-five-jay-z-and-chief-keef-beat-on-boats-against-the-current/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=SPIN |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=1 July 2024 |title=Chief Keef, 'Finally Rich' |url=https://au.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/-62596/chief-keef-finally-rich-62612/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=Rolling Stone Australia |language=en-AU |archive-date=10 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250210025555/https://au.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/-62596/chief-keef-finally-rich-62612/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[File:Yunglean (cropped).jpg|thumb|238x238px|Yung Lean's tracks "Ginseng Strip 2002" and "Hurt" contributed to the wider popularization of cloud rap and vaporwave visual aesthetics<ref>{{cite web |last1=Parizot |first1=Matthew |date=May 10, 2018 |title=Yung Lean Shares Some Of His Favorite Songs With His Fans |url=https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/114374-yung-lean-shares-some-of-his-favorite-songs-with-his-fans-news |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614035719/https://www.hotnewhiphop.com/yung-lean-shares-some-of-his-favorite-songs-with-his-fans-news.49888.html |archive-date=June 14, 2018 |access-date=May 24, 2020 |website=HotNewHipHop}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://miscellanynews.org/2022/04/20/arts/yung-leans-stardust-sees-rapper-exploring-new-style/ |title=Yung Lean's 'Stardust' sees rapper exploring new style – The Miscellany News |access-date=29 July 2025 |archive-date=23 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250623020735/https://miscellanynews.org/2022/04/20/arts/yung-leans-stardust-sees-rapper-exploring-new-style/ |url-status=live }}</ref>]] In 2012, Black Kray's Goth Money alongside Wicca Phase's GothBoiClique and cloud rap pioneer Bones,<ref name="Rampertab">{{Cite web |last=Rampertab |first=Bonnibel Lilith |date=2024-11-04 |title=BONES, the self-proclaimed 'Graveyard Prince,' mourns life with 'CADAVER' |url=https://dailycampus.com/2024/11/04/bones-the-self-proclaimed-graveyard-prince-mourns-life-with-cadaver/ |access-date=2025-07-29 |website=The Daily Campus |language=en |archive-date=6 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250806085411/https://dailycampus.com/2024/11/04/bones-the-self-proclaimed-graveyard-prince-mourns-life-with-cadaver/ |url-status=live }}</ref> would later draw influences from witch house, leading to the development of emo rap, later popularized by Lil Peep, XXXTentacion and Juice WRLD.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pierre |first=Alphonse |date=2024-05-10 |title=Underground Rap Wouldn't Be the Same Without Black Kray |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/underground-rap-wouldnt-be-the-same-without-black-kray/ |access-date=2025-07-29 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=16 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250716155215/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/underground-rap-wouldnt-be-the-same-without-black-kray/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Rampertab"/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Brace |first=Ryan |date=2021-04-06 |title=Underground legend BONES adds to his repertoire with 'PushingUpDaisies' |url=http://www.michigandaily.com/arts/music/underground-legend-bones-adds-to-his-repertoire-with-pushingupdaisies/ |access-date=2025-07-29 |website=The Michigan Daily |language=en-US |archive-date=6 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250806085426/https://www.michigandaily.com/arts/music/underground-legend-bones-adds-to-his-repertoire-with-pushingupdaisies/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Additionally, Kray's early collaborations with Working on Dying contributed to the development of tread music.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jackson |first=Reed |date=2015-11-02 |title=Meet Goth Money, the Most Positive Crew of Trillionaires on the Internet |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/goth-money-records-interview-trillionaires-2015/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=VICE |language=en-US |archive-date=6 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250806085430/https://www.vice.com/en/article/goth-money-records-interview-trillionaires-2015/ |url-status=live }}</ref> By 2013, Swedish cloud rap artist Yung Lean's track "Ginseng Strip 2002" went viral online, influencing a new generation of internet rappers.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-04-23 |title=Yung Lean Doer Is the Weirdest 16-Year-Old White Swedish Rapper You'll Hear This Week |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/meet-yung-lean-doer-the-tee-swedish-white-rapper-whos-easily-the-weirdest-thing-on-the-internet-this-month/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=VICE |language=en-US |archive-date=23 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923125343/https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/rb7kq6/meet-yung-lean-doer-the-tee-swedish-white-rapper-whos-easily-the-weirdest-thing-on-the-internet-this-month |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Pierre |first=Alphonse |date=2024-05-10 |title=Underground Rap Wouldn't Be the Same Without Black Kray |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/underground-rap-wouldnt-be-the-same-without-black-kray/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=16 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250716155215/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/underground-rap-wouldnt-be-the-same-without-black-kray/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sniffers |url=https://www.sniffers.co.nz/article/yung-lean-rap-cultural-reset |access-date=2025-07-13 |website=www.sniffers.co.nz |archive-date=6 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250806085402/https://www.sniffers.co.nz/article/yung-lean-rap-cultural-reset |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="fried19">{{cite news |last1=Friedlander |first1=Emilie |date=August 19, 2019 |title=Chillwave: a momentary microgenre that ushered in the age of nostalgia |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/aug/21/chillwave-microgenre-nostalgia-pop |work=The Guardian}}</ref> Amarco referred to Lean, who visually drew influence from seapunk and vaporwave aesthetics,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bakare |first=Lanre |date=2014-08-15 |title=Yung Lean review – high energy meets low culture in sweaty hip-hop set |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/aug/15/yung-lean-review-the-garage |access-date=2025-06-30 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-07-26 |title=Yung Lean, Lil Yachty and Sickly-Sweet Rap Music |url=https://pelicanmagazine.com.au/2017/07/26/yung-lean-lil-yachty-and-sickly-sweet-rap-music/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Pelican |language=en-AU |archive-date=15 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250815144503/https://pelicanmagazine.com.au/2017/07/26/yung-lean-lil-yachty-and-sickly-sweet-rap-music/ |url-status=live }}</ref> as "by and large a product of the internet and a leading example of a generation of youths who garner fame through social media."<ref name="amarca16">{{cite web |last1=Amarca |first1=Nico |date=March 1, 2016 |title=From Bucket Hats to Pokémon: Breaking Down Yung Lean's Style |url=https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/yung-lean-style/ |access-date=May 24, 2020 |website=High Snobiety |archive-date=11 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230711032128/https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/yung-lean-style/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Swedish online rap collective Drain Gang, consisting of Bladee, Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital, and Whitearmor, further influenced the development of online rap music.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Drain gang: the Next step in the evolution of modern music? |url=http://www.osatelegraph.org/4/post/2021/02/drain-gang-the-next-step-in-the-evolution-of-modern-music.html |access-date=2025-07-01 |website=The OSA Telegraph |language=en}}</ref>
Contemporaneous developments in online underground rap during this period included experimental and industrial hip-hop artists such as Death Grips, JPEGMAFIA, Clipping and Injury Reserve.
=== Mid–late 2010s: SoundCloud rap === {{See also|Mumble rap#SoundCloud rap scene}}
During the mid-to-late 2010s, the music distribution site SoundCloud became a central hub for a new style and movement in online hip-hop. South Florida's SoundCloud rap scene proved heavily influential to the sound of this era, drawing heavy influence from South Florida rap collectives like SpaceGhostPurrp's Raider Klan and Metro Zu.<ref name=":032"/> Artists like Denzel Curry, Lil Tracy (Yung Bruh) and Lil Peep would emerge from the scene as well as Lil Pump, who would rise to internet virality through his 2017 single, ''Gucci Gang''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pierre |first=Alphonse |date=2019-02-27 |title=How Rap's SoundCloud Generation Changed the Music Business Forever |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/how-raps-soundcloud-generation-changed-the-music-business-forever/ |access-date=2025-07-08 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=20 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250120103522/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/how-raps-soundcloud-generation-changed-the-music-business-forever/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Turner |first=David |date=2017-06-01 |title=Look At Me!: The Noisy, Blown-Out SoundCloud Revolution Redefining Rap |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/look-at-me-the-noisy-blown-out-soundcloud-revolution-redefining-rap-123887/ |access-date=2025-07-08 |website=Rolling Stone |language=en-US |archive-date=11 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411025719/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/look-at-me-the-noisy-soundcloud-revolution-changing-rap-w485101 |url-status=live }}</ref>
This era was defined by artists like XXXTentacion, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty and Playboi Carti, who were collectively labeled soundcloud rap. Although internet rappers had been releasing music on SoundCloud for years, it was only during this period that the term "soundcloud rap" became associated with a specific sound. Subsequently, the term "mumble rap" later emerged as a pejorative to describe the off-kilter lyricism and unclear cadence and delivery of these rappers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Iandoli |first=Kathy |date=21 December 2016 |title=The Rise of ‘Mumble Rap’: Did Lyricism Take a Hit in 2016? |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/rise-of-mumble-rap-lyricism-2016-7625631/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=Billboard |language=en-US |archive-date=2 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250802231828/https://www.billboard.com/music/rb-hip-hop/rise-of-mumble-rap-lyricism-2016-7625631/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Additionally, Playboi Carti's label, ''Opium'' became responsible for the emergence of notable artists such as Ken Carson and Destroy Lonely in the late 2010s, who both reached wider popularity in the early 2020s.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Caramanica |first=Jon |date=2025-04-17 |title=Playboi Carti and His Offspring Ponder Life After Rage-Rap |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/arts/music/playboi-carti-ken-carson-2hollis.html |access-date=2025-07-25 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=17 April 2025 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250417165558/https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/17/arts/music/playboi-carti-ken-carson-2hollis.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Artists associated with the label pioneered a fashion style described as "opiumcore",<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ng |first=Vanessa |date=2023-11-23 |title=Meet the Opiumcore Boys of KL |url=https://www.mens-folio.com/style/meet-the-opiumcore-boys-of-kl/ |access-date=2025-07-06 |website=Men's Folio |language=en-US |archive-date=6 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250706152405/https://www.mens-folio.com/style/meet-the-opiumcore-boys-of-kl/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Opiumcore Has Taken Over The Streetwear Agenda For 2024 {{!}} Grazia India |url=https://www.grazia.co.in/fashion/opiumcore-has-taken-over-the-streetwear-agenda-for-2024_-11807.html |access-date=2025-07-06 |website=www.grazia.co.in |language=en |archive-date=6 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250706153340/https://www.grazia.co.in/fashion/opiumcore-has-taken-over-the-streetwear-agenda-for-2024_-11807.html |url-status=live }}</ref> which drew from punk and alternative fashion,<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |date=2021-03-24 |title=Whole Lotta Looks: The New Punk Style of Playboi Carti |url=https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/playboi-carti-style/ |access-date=2022-11-07 |website=Highsnobiety |language=en}}</ref> with the broader underground rap scene's internet-driven aesthetics being noted as influential to the high fashion world.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Karjala |first=Anssi |title=THE LIST {{!}} Discover {{!}} Underground Rap and {{as written|I|t's [sic]}} Influence in Modern High Fashion |url=https://thelist.app/discover/post/underground-rap-and-high-fashion/65eb0ecc6417530e4aa8b440 |access-date=2025-07-06 |website=thelist.app |language=en |archive-date=14 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250714143242/https://thelist.app/discover/post/underground-rap-and-high-fashion/65eb0ecc6417530e4aa8b440 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Allen |first=Kealy |date=2022-03-19 |title=Playboi Carti: Equal Rapper And Style God |url=https://culted.com/playboi-carti-the-initial-streetwear-legend-turned-into-a-designer-brand-wearing-vampire/ |access-date=2022-11-07 |website=Culted |language=en-GB |archive-date=6 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250706152700/https://culted.com/playboi-carti-the-initial-streetwear-legend-turned-into-a-designer-brand-wearing-vampire/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=12 March 2021 |title=Lil Uzi Vert Is Redefining Men's Fashion |url=https://www.essence.com/fashion/lil-uzi-vert-best-fashion-moments/ |access-date=2022-11-07 |website=Essence |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-09-26 |title=The Style Evolution Of Playboi Carti (2011-2021) {{!}} Fashionversity |url=https://fashionversity.com/style-evolution-of-playboi-carti/ |access-date=2022-11-07 |language=en-US |archive-date=6 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250706152331/https://fashionversity.com/style-evolution-of-playboi-carti/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-06-25 |title=Get Ready for the Summer of Ken Car$on |url=https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/ken-carson-interview-project-x/ |access-date=2022-11-07 |website=Highsnobiety |language=en |archive-date=14 April 2025 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250414112252/https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/latest-products/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
=== 2020s === {{See also|Underground hip-hop#2020s|Alt TikTok}}During the early 2020s, many internet rap microgenres emerged or would primarily develop such as sigilkore, digicore, rage, jerk, krushclub, pluggnb, ambient plugg, terror plugg and hexd,<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |date=30 April 2024 |title=THE FACE's guide to the American rap underground |url=https://theface.com/music/underground-internet-rap-rage-carti-yeat-ambient-plugg-iokera-terror-jerk-krushclub-lumi-athena |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=The Face |language=en-gb |archive-date=6 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250706014354/https://theface.com/music/underground-internet-rap-rage-carti-yeat-ambient-plugg-iokera-terror-jerk-krushclub-lumi-athena |url-status=live }}</ref> with ''Rolling Stone'' describing the 2020s underground rap scene as "extremely online".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |title=Yeat: Lyfë |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/yeat-lyfe/ |access-date=2025-06-01 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=3 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241203160717/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/yeat-lyfe/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Additionally, influential collectives during this period include Novagang<ref>{{Cite web |last=Evrynameonhereistaken |date=2025-02-06 |title=Nova Gang: The Underground Collective Putting A Spin On Modern Media |url=https://thetubmag.com/nova-gang-the-underground-collective-putting-a-spin-on-modern-media/ |access-date=2025-07-29 |website=TUB |language=en-US |archive-date=4 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250904195956/https://thetubmag.com/nova-gang-the-underground-collective-putting-a-spin-on-modern-media/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="mean">{{Cite web |last=Cafolla |first=Anna |date=17 October 2022 |title=What does 'hyperpop' mean in 2022? |url=https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/features/what-does-hyperpop-mean-in-2022-23808/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230713021749/https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/features/what-does-hyperpop-mean-in-2022-23808/ |archive-date=13 July 2023 |access-date=13 July 2023 |website=Rolling Stone UK |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Jones |first=Phoebe M.M. |date=2024 |title=Identity Through Excess: Trans Identities Expressed Through Hyperpop |url=https://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/Jones_uncg_0154M_14115.pdf |access-date=2025-07-08 |publisher=University of North Carolina at Greensboro |archive-date=11 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250911143144/https://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/Jones_uncg_0154M_14115.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> and Surf Gang.<ref name=":04">{{Cite web |last=Way |first=Katie |date=2021-09-20 |title=Meet Surf Gang, the Post-Rap Rap Crew |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/meet-surf-gang-the-post-rap-rap-crew/ |access-date=2025-07-29 |website=VICE |language=en-US |archive-date=8 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250608182720/https://www.vice.com/en/article/meet-surf-gang-the-post-rap-rap-crew/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Neville |title=evilgiane: The Surf Gang founder who's recalibrating hip-hop |url=https://www.altpress.com/evilgiane-surf-gang-interview/ |access-date=2025-07-29 |website=Alternative Press Magazine |language=en-US |archive-date=31 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250131194145/https://www.altpress.com/evilgiane-surf-gang-interview/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Online platforms such as Discord and online games like Roblox have been noted as influential.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-05-16 |title=How Roblox Sparked a Chaotic Music Scene (Published 2021) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/16/arts/music/roblox-video-game-music.html |access-date=2025-08-24 |language=en |archive-date=11 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250911033733/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/16/arts/music/roblox-video-game-music.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Zhang |first=Cat |date=2022-05-25 |title=On Discord, Music Fans Become Artists' Besties, Collaborators, and Even Unpaid Interns |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/discord-music-fandoms/ |access-date=2025-08-24 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=9 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241009204931/https://pitchfork.com/features/article/discord-music-fandoms/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=2024-10-03 |title=The Lost Promises of Hyperpoptimism |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/the-lost-promises-of-hyperpoptimism/ |access-date=2025-08-24 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=28 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250828164253/https://pitchfork.com/features/article/the-lost-promises-of-hyperpoptimism/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
According to music journalist Kieran Press-Reynolds, writing for ''Pitchfork'', American rapper Nettspend "bleached his hair, and promptly became exalted on subreddits and Discord servers as the Bieber, or the Cobain, of fried internet rap".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Garvey |first=Meaghan |title=Nettspend: BAD ASS F*CKING KID |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/nettspend-bad-ass-fcking-kid/ |access-date=2026-04-04 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref>
Notable influential scenes and artists began to gain wider popularity during this period which included Luci4,<ref name=":11" /> Islurwhenitalk,<ref name=":11" /> Odetari, 6arelyhuman, Kets4eki, Cade Clair and Asteria in the sigilkore and krushclub scene; Summrs, Tana, Kankan, Iayze and Autumn! in the plugg and pluggnb scene;<ref name="MSAP32">{{cite web |author=Mario Sundaresan |author2=Alphonso Pierre |date=December 7, 2021 |title=eoy_2021: The year plugg took over |url=https://www.sparky.wtf/news/plugg-atlanta-underground |access-date=February 1, 2022 |work=Sparky |publisher=No Bells |archive-date=1 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701161315/https://www.sparky.wtf/news/plugg-atlanta-underground |url-status=live }}</ref> Yeat, Osamason, Yung Fazo, Prettifun and Che in the rage scene; as well as Xaviersobased, Nettspend and Yhapojj in the jerk scene. Although these artists initially emerged from these scenes, some later embarked onto other musical styles and movements.
Influential acts include Lithuanian rapper Yabujin<ref>{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=2025-02-19 |title=Chasing Yabujin, the Artist Who Secretly Shaped the Underground Sound of the 2020s |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/chasing-yabujin-the-artist-who-secretly-shaped-the-underground-sound-of-the-2020s/ |access-date=2025-07-06 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=30 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250630191438/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/chasing-yabujin-the-artist-who-secretly-shaped-the-underground-sound-of-the-2020s/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Internet rap collective Reptilian Club Boyz.<ref name=":11">{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds|first=Kieran|date=2026-02-26|title=Luci4 Unleashed a Generation of Glitchy Underground Rap|url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/luci4-unleashed-a-generation-of-glitchy-underground-rap/|access-date=2026-02-26|website=Pitchfork|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":33">{{Cite web |title=Cover Story: xaviersobased|url=https://www.thefader.com/2026/02/03/xaviersobased-fader-cover-story-intervew-album-dj-rennessy|access-date=2026-03-30|website=The FADER|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":15">{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds|first=Kieran|date=2025-02-19|title=Chasing Yabujin, the Artist Who Secretly Shaped the Underground Sound of the 2020s|url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/chasing-yabujin-the-artist-who-secretly-shaped-the-underground-sound-of-the-2020s/|access-date=2026-01-22|website=Pitchfork|language=en-US}}</ref> Other notable artists include 2hollis, Sematary and Rich Amiri.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lindert |first=Hattie |date=2024-03-14 |title=The Future of Underground Rap Is Extremely Online |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/xaviersobased-nettspend-yhapojj-interview-1234982383/ |access-date=2025-07-21 |website=Rolling Stone |language=en-US |archive-date=31 May 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250531033249/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/xaviersobased-nettspend-yhapojj-interview-1234982383/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Cartter |first=Eileen |date=2025-03-21 |title=Nettspend Grows Up |url=https://www.gq.com/story/nettspend-profile |access-date=2025-06-01 |website=GQ |language=en-US |archive-date=28 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250928013612/https://www.gq.com/story/nettspend-profile |url-status=live }}</ref> Subsequently, the online underground rap sound expanded to multiple international and regional scenes around the world, particularly in the United Kingdom as spearheaded by artists such as Lancey Foux,<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |title=Fimiguerrero / Len / Lancey Foux: CONGLOMERATE |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/fimiguerrero-len-lancey-foux-conglomerate/ |access-date=2025-06-29 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=26 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250726180355/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/fimiguerrero-len-lancey-foux-conglomerate/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Fimiguerrero,<ref name=":2" /> Fakemink,<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Madden |first=Emma |title=fakemink: "Givenchy" |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/fakemink-givenchy/ |access-date=2025-06-29 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=27 November 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241127052323/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/tracks/fakemink-givenchy/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lindert |first=Hattie |date=2024-03-14 |title=The Future of Underground Rap Is Extremely Online |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/xaviersobased-nettspend-yhapojj-interview-1234982383/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}</ref> Len and YT.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dazed |date=2025-02-28 |title=9 underground artists leading the UK's rap revolution |url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/66191/1/dazed-uk-rappers-cover-spring-2025-victory-lap-yt-niko-b-bxks-jim-legxacy-kwes-e |access-date=2025-09-09 |website=Dazed |language=en |archive-date=24 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250724195724/https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/66191/1/dazed-uk-rappers-cover-spring-2025-victory-lap-yt-niko-b-bxks-jim-legxacy-kwes-e |url-status=live }}</ref> In China, artists Bloodz Boi, Billionhappy and Jackzebra emerged.<ref name=":03">{{Cite web |last=Dazed |date=2025-04-02 |title=Jackzebra is the auto-tuned voice of post-industrial China |url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/66520/1/jackzebra-is-the-auto-tuned-voice-of-post-industrial-china |access-date=2025-07-27 |website=Dazed |language=en |archive-date=14 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250814025437/https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/66520/1/jackzebra-is-the-auto-tuned-voice-of-post-industrial-china |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=Gui |first=James |title=jackzebra: 王中王 |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/jackzebra-king-of-kings/ |access-date=2025-07-27 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=27 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250827050721/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/jackzebra-king-of-kings/ |url-status=live }}</ref> While in Argentina, the scene was spearheaded by the SwaggerBoyz collective led by AgusFortnite2008 and Stiffy.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Barbero |first1=Juampa |date=20 March 2024 |title=10 lanzamientos para escuchar esta semana: Peces Raros, Blair, El Club Audiovisual y más |url=https://indiehoy.com/noticias/10-lanzamientos-para-escuchar-esta-semana-peces-raros-blair-el-club-audiovisual-y-mas/#h-agusfortnite2008-y-stiffy-murio-la-musica |website=Indie Hoy |language=es |access-date=20 September 2025 |archive-date=12 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250212095138/https://indiehoy.com/noticias/10-lanzamientos-para-escuchar-esta-semana-peces-raros-blair-el-club-audiovisual-y-mas/#h-agusfortnite2008-y-stiffy-murio-la-musica |url-status=live }}</ref>
== Related genres ==
=== Cloud rap === {{Main|Cloud rap}}
'''Cloud rap''' is a subgenre of internet rap that emerged in the late 2000s, characterized by ethereal, ambient production and lo-fi aesthetics. It was popularized by artists like Lil B and producers such as Clams Casino.
=== Phonk === {{Main|Phonk}}
'''Phonk''' is a subgenre of hip-hop that draws heavily from 1990s Memphis rap and horrorcore, pioneered by SpaceGhostPurrp, featuring lo-fi samples, chopped and screwed vocals, and cowbells. The genre later gave birth to new microgenres like drift phonk, which were widely popularized on platforms like SoundCloud and TikTok in the late 2010s to early 2020s.
=== Drill === {{Main|Drill music}}
'''Drill music''' (also known as '''drill rap''' or simply '''drill''') originated in Chicago in the early 2010s, known for dark beats and violent, raw lyrics. Chief Keef is credited with popularizing the genre, which later developed scenes in the UK and across the United States.
=== Lowend === {{Main|Lowend}}
'''Lowend''' is a subgenre of Milwaukee hip-hop that emerged primarily on the internet, focused on heavy bass, slowed-down beats, fast claps and ambient textures.
=== Plugg === {{Main|Plugg}}
'''Plugg''' (also known as '''Plugg music''') is a subgenre of trap music that developed in the mid-2010s, noted for dreamy, minimal beats often produced with synth pads and bell sounds, emerging around 2013 as a cohesive production style of the collective called Beatpluggz including Atlanta-based producers MexikoDro and StoopidXool.<ref name="HVM">{{cite web |author=Hara Vanna Martin |title=Everything You Need To Know About Plug Music |url=https://peacockplume.fr/arts-culture/everything-you-need-know-about-plug-music |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120162019/https://peacockplume.fr/arts-culture/everything-you-need-know-about-plug-music |archive-date=January 20, 2022 |access-date=January 28, 2022 |publisher=Peacock Plume Student Media, The American University of Paris}}</ref><ref name="KTO">{{cite web |author=Arshan Jawid |date=June 12, 2022 |title=MexikoDro on Drake Placement, Plugg, Lancey Foux, Rapping? Pluggnb (Interview) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llUURNUmCAc&t=382s |work=KidsTakeOver |quote=Arshan Jawid: "I mean, you created the plugg sound [...]" MexikoDro: "[...] I am not {{Linktext|finna}} say that I created this [plugg] sound. You gotta tell people. Pluggz created this sound. [I mean] BeatPluggz: me, dashawn, StoopidXool, PoloBoyShawty and all that were doing this sound. I ain't even gonna take full credit" |access-date=30 June 2025 |archive-date=29 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329064247/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llUURNUmCAc&t=382s |url-status=live }}</ref> Plugg was inspired by Zaytoven,<ref name="ZH">{{cite web |author=Zainab Hasnain |date=May 9, 2016 |title=ON THE BEAT: MexikoDro, the Enigmatic Atlantan Producer Redefining Trap's Sound |url=https://thehundreds.com/blogs/content/on-the-beat-mexikodro-the-enigmatic-atlantan-producer-redefining-traps-sound |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120161955/https://thehundreds.com/blogs/content/on-the-beat-mexikodro-the-enigmatic-atlantan-producer-redefining-traps-sound |archive-date=January 20, 2022 |access-date=January 30, 2022 |publisher=The Hundreds}}</ref> Project Pat, Juicy J, Gucci Mane, the snap rap group D4L, and the Paper Mario Nintendo soundtrack.<ref name="JR2">{{cite web |author=Julia R. |date=July 1, 2021 |title=Plugg: From Atlanta To Paris |url=https://futureaudioworkshop.com/plugg-from-atlanta-to-paris/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120163103/https://futureaudioworkshop.com/plugg-from-atlanta-to-paris/ |archive-date=January 20, 2022 |access-date=January 26, 2022 |publisher=Future Audio Workshop}}</ref>
=== Emo rap === {{Main|Emo rap}}
'''Emo rap''' draws influences from trap and cloud rap merging with the themes and aesthetics of emo and alternative rock. Originally pioneered by Bones and Black Kray. Artists like Lil Peep, XXXTentaction and Juice WRLD helped bring it into the mainstream.
=== PluggnB === {{Main|Plugg#Second wave: PluggnB scene}}
'''PluggnB''' is a fusion genre of plugg and contemporary R&B, combining soft melodic vocals, plugg-style instrumentation and dreamy R&B synths. It emerged in the late 2010s and gained popularity on TikTok in the early 2020s, with artists such as Lil Shine, Izaya Tiji, Autumn, Kashdami, SoFaygo, Yeat, Summrs,<ref name="MS1">{{cite web |author=Mario Sundaresan |date=March 17, 2021 |title=It's 2021 and I can't stop listening to PLUGG |url=https://thehundreds.com/blogs/content/on-the-beat-mexikodro-the-enigmatic-atlantan-producer-redefining-traps-sound |access-date=January 31, 2022 |publisher=No Bells |archive-date=9 August 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250809115240/https://thehundreds.com/blogs/content/on-the-beat-mexikodro-the-enigmatic-atlantan-producer-redefining-traps-sound |url-status=live }}</ref> Weiland, and Kankan<ref name="MSAP">{{cite web |author=Mario Sundaresan |author2=Alphonso Pierre |date=December 7, 2021 |title=eoy_2021: The year plugg took over |url=https://www.sparky.wtf/news/plugg-atlanta-underground |access-date=February 1, 2022 |work=Sparky |publisher=No Bells |archive-date=1 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701161315/https://www.sparky.wtf/news/plugg-atlanta-underground |url-status=live }}</ref> and the now-defunct artistic collective known as SlayWorld.<ref name="BC">{{cite web |author=Brandon Callender |date=December 20, 2021 |title=Popstar Benny wants to make your favorite artist get weird |url=https://www.thefader.com/2021/12/20/popstar-benny-interview |access-date=June 6, 2022 |work=The Fader |archive-date=22 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250622020133/http://www.thefader.com/2021/12/20/popstar-benny-interview |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="JR2"/>
=== Digicore === {{Main|Digicore}}
'''Digicore''' is a form of internet rap that emerged alongside hyperpop in the late 2010s, characterized by heavy autotune, sped-up and pitched-up vocal effects, centered around online platforms like Discord and SoundCloud. Collectives such as novagang and helix tears have been considered influential.<ref name="mean2">{{Cite web |last=Cafolla |first=Anna |date=17 October 2022 |title=What does 'hyperpop' mean in 2022? |url=https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/features/what-does-hyperpop-mean-in-2022-23808/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230713021749/https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/features/what-does-hyperpop-mean-in-2022-23808/ |archive-date=13 July 2023 |access-date=13 July 2023 |website=Rolling Stone UK |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Jones |first=Phoebe M.M. |date=2024 |title=Identity Through Excess: Trans Identities Expressed Through Hyperpop |url=https://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/Jones_uncg_0154M_14115.pdf |access-date=2025-07-08 |publisher=University of North Carolina at Greensboro |archive-date=11 September 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250911143144/https://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/Jones_uncg_0154M_14115.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":8" />
=== Rage === {{Main|Rage (music genre)}}
'''Rage''' (also known as '''rage music''',<ref name=":02"/><ref name=":1" /> or '''rage rap'''<ref>{{Cite news |date=2024-11-01 |title=Yeat's Chart Topper and Rage Rap's New Wave |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/01/arts/music/popcast-yeat.html |access-date=2025-04-28 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=4 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250704073020/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/01/arts/music/popcast-yeat.html |url-status=live }}</ref>) is a microgenre of trap music marked by aggressive synths, energetic drums, and distorted vocals. It emerged in the late 2010s, but was popularized in the early 2020s by artists like Yung Fazo, Playboi Carti, Trippie Redd, Ken Carson, Destroy Lonely, Mario Judah and Yeat.<ref name=":02"/>
=== 2k13 Hood EDM === '''2k13 Hood EDM''' is a microgenre of EDM trap music pioneered by 1c34 member and rapper St47ic who had also been a member of Jewelxxet.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds|first=Kieran|date=2026-02-26|title=Luci4 Unleashed a Generation of Glitchy Underground Rap|url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/luci4-unleashed-a-generation-of-glitchy-underground-rap/|access-date=2026-04-09|website=Pitchfork|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-03-30|title=The Ones: st47ic's “Witches and Angels”|url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/st47ic-witches-and-angels-new-song-listen/|access-date=2025-11-08|last=Pierre|first=Alphonse|website=Pitchfork|language=en-US}}</ref>
=== Jerk === {{Main|Jerk (music genre)}}
'''Jerk''' is an internet rap microgenre that emerged in the early 2020s, taking from the early 2010s wave of jerk rap, the sound was reimagined by Californian producer kashpaint and New York rapper Xaviersobased alongside his collective 1c34 into a completely different style that incorporated fast tempos, melodic synths, and off-kilter lyricism, while blending elements of cloud rap, digicore, Milwaukee lowend and plugg.<ref name=":02"/>
=== Sigilkore === {{Main|Sigilkore}}
'''Sigilkore''' is a microgenre and electronic music movement that started on SoundCloud in the late 2010s and combines aspects of cloud rap and trap music, contrary to its sound, derived from hyperpop.<ref name=":23">{{Cite web |last=Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=2024-04-30 |title=THE FACE's guide to the American rap underground |url=https://theface.com/music/underground-internet-rap-rage-carti-yeat-ambient-plugg-iokera-terror-jerk-krushclub-lumi-athena |access-date=2025-02-27 |website=The Face |language=en-gb |archive-date=6 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250706014354/https://theface.com/music/underground-internet-rap-rage-carti-yeat-ambient-plugg-iokera-terror-jerk-krushclub-lumi-athena |url-status=live }}</ref> Dark synth melodies, effects and DJ mixing are frequently applied in-post. Lyrical themes in the genre revolve around dark themes,<ref name=":42">{{Cite web |last=Orvis |first=Jameson |date=2021-01-15 |title=A Guide to Soundcloud's Demonic Underworld |url=https://www.passionweiss.com/2021/01/14/a-guide-to-soundclouds-demonic-underworld/ |access-date=2025-06-18 |website=Passion of the Weiss |language=en-US |archive-date=20 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250620161526/https://www.passionweiss.com/2021/01/14/a-guide-to-soundclouds-demonic-underworld/ |url-status=live }}</ref> including occultism,<ref name=":32">{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=2024-01-19 |title=The Musical Age of Shitpost Modernism |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/the-age-of-shitpost-modernism/ |access-date=2024-01-22 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=19 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250619153900/https://pitchfork.com/features/article/the-age-of-shitpost-modernism/ |url-status=live }}</ref> blood and vampires.<ref name=":42" />
=== HexD === {{Main|HexD}}
'''HexD''' is an internet rap microgenre that emerged in the late 2010s to early 2020s, characterized by heavy use of bitcrushing mixed with sped-up and pitched-up vocals.<ref name=":62">{{Cite web |last=Matulaityte|first=Giedre|title=15 bands and solo artists who are rewriting the emo rulebook|url=https://www.altpress.com/artists-rewriting-emo-rulebook-post-emo/|access-date=2025-09-18|website=Alternative Press Magazine|language=en-US}}</ref> Originally pioneered by West Coast-based producer she_skin. The term was coined by Hexcastcrew member Stacy Minajj, who released the DJ mix ''Rare RCB hexD.mp3'' on June 15, 2019.<ref name=":14">{{Cite web |last=Meyer |first=Tom |date=14 September 2020 |title=The Influence of Rare RCB + HexD MP3 |url=https://www.passionweiss.com/2020/09/14/the-influence-of-rare-rcb-hexd-mp3/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=Passion of the Weiss |archive-date=30 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250630191438/https://www.passionweiss.com/2020/09/14/the-influence-of-rare-rcb-hexd-mp3/ |url-status=live }}</ref> It samples and remixes songs from the influential online rap collective Reptilian Club Boyz.<ref name=":14" />
=== Krushclub === {{Main|Sigilkore#Krushclub}}
'''Krushclub''' is a subgenre of sigilkore, originating in the early 2020s, mixing Jersey club elements with electronic sound qualities. Blending hyperpop and dance music, known for bitcrushed sounds, cartoonish lyrics, and video game-like energy. Popularized by artists like Odetari, 6arelyhuman, Luci4, and Lumi Athena. The genre draws influence from hexD and sigilkore, reaching wider recognition on online platforms like TikTok.<ref name=":02"/>
=== Dark plugg === '''Dark plugg''' is a microgenre of plugg which grew out of the DMV trap scene, originally pioneered by Surreal Gang producers like XanGang, Orcery, and Eddie Gianni, as well as rappers Slimesito and Fluhkunxhkos. Notable artists include Glokk40Spaz, Elijxhwtf, and Smokingskul.<ref name=":02"/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Noel |first=Jude |title=Bloody!: So Wavy Luciano |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/bloody-so-wavy-luciano/ |access-date=2025-07-28 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=26 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250726180417/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/bloody-so-wavy-luciano/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=tdf is making 808s big enough to blow your speakers up |url=https://www.thefader.com/2024/04/05/tdf-producer-interview |access-date=2026-04-11 |website=The FADER |language=en}}</ref> According to British newspaper ''The Guardian'', dark plugg is a "micro-trend".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Petridis |first=Alexis |date=2023-12-22 |title=Blank space: how Taylor Swift – and an aching sense of loss – dominated music in 2023 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/dec/22/blank-space-how-taylor-swift-and-an-aching-sense-of-loss-dominated-music-in-2023 |access-date=2026-04-07 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
=== Ambient plugg === '''Ambient plugg''' is a microgenre of plugg blending original plugg's percussion with atmospheric textures, glitchy ad-libs, and meditative synths. Pioneered in the late 2010s by artists like wifi and Izaya Tiji, the style emphasizes mood and texture over lyricism, creating soft, surreal soundscapes. It later gained traction through collectives like Shed Theory and artists like Babyxsosa.<ref name=":02"/>
=== Terror plugg === '''Terror plugg''' (also known as '''extremo-plugg<ref name=":05" />''') is a microgenre of plugg characterized by its use of distorted 808s, eerie melodies, and intense vocal delivery, originally pioneered by producers and rappers Squillo, TDF, Marrgielaa, and Boolymon. Due to unconventional 808 production, terror plugg experienced a wave of online virality between 2024 and 2025 through internet memes on TikTok and Instagram.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=2025-06-04 |title=Underground Rap Has a Cornball Crisis |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/underground-rap-has-a-cornball-crisis/ |access-date=2025-07-28 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US |archive-date=25 July 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250725043959/https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/underground-rap-has-a-cornball-crisis/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Music journalist Kieran Press-Reynolds credited New York rapper Yuke's 2024 single "ian goin" as "the logical excruciating endpoint of the 'terror plugg' style".<ref name=":05">{{Cite web |last=Pitchfork|date=2024-08-26|title=26 Contenders for the 2024 Song of the Summer|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/2024-song-of-the-summer/|access-date=2026-04-09|website=Pitchfork|language=en-US}}</ref> Notable artists include boolymon, Lazer Dim 700, Twovrt, and Savage.<ref name=":02"/>
== See also == * List of hip-hop genres * List of Internet rap collectives * List of Internet music genres
== References == {{Reflist}}
== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book |last=Gamble |first=Steven |title=Digital Flows: Online Hip Hop Music and Culture |publisher=OUP USA |year=2024 |isbn=978-0197656396}}
{{Hip-hop}}
Category:Internet rap Category:2000s in music Category:2010s in music Category:Counterculture of the 2020s Category:Counterculture of the 2010s Category:Counterculture of the 2000s Category:Hip-hop genres Category:Lo-fi music Category:Trap music Category:Microgenres Category:Cloud rap Category:Internet music genres