Behold, the changing of rap’s guard. The collective obsession with Nicki Minaj seems to be in the midst of a generational shift; now, an exciting assortment of idiosyncratic female rappers are coming to the forefront. Stefflon Don is a name that might be unfamiliar to those consuming the American rap scene, but overseas, she’s one of the hottest, bubbling artists in England.
Born in Birmingham to Jamaican parents, Don sounds outside of the trap-heavy, sexually-charged stylings of many her feminine peers. For many, her introduction came when she was named to XXL’s Freshman 2018 Class in a surprise move that irritated fans of artists like Molly Brazy and Rico Nasty. Although it may be a couple of months later, any lingering doubts about Stefflon Don’s star power are addressed on her new project SECURE. She boldly steps from the grime scene into the lush tropical sounds of Jamaican dancehall for a lavish, multi-faceted vanity project of the highest quality.
The cover of SECURE is the first of many intrepid statements that Don makes. Don’s album art pays direct homage to Lil Kim’s cover for her second studio album The Notorious K.I.M. Kim, herself, was the originator of the rambunctiously sexy femme fatale personality in rap, that album being her breakthrough to the commercial scene; it sold 229,000 copies in its first week, her highest first-week sales of her career (it would later go on to become platinum).
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