Leikeli47

Last updated

Leikeli47
Also known asLeikeli
Genres Hip hop
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • songwriter
Years active2010–present

Leikeli47 (or Leikeli) [a] is an American rapper [2] signed to RCA Records. In 2018, she released her second full-length album, Acrylic. [3] Until 2024, she was known for concealing her face with a bandana or balaclava at all performances and professional appearances. [4]

Contents

Early life

She was raised in both Virginia and New York, primarily in the Virginia and Brooklyn neighborhoods of Danville, Norfolk, Brownsville and Bedford–Stuyvesant. [2] [5] [6] She is of partial Trinidadian and Guyanese descent. [7] She described herself as having been a shy child who was interested in becoming a rapper from a young age. She cites the late Michael Jackson and N.E.R.D. as some of her favorite performers. [6]

Career

Prior to being signed to RCA Records, Leikeli released a mixtape in 2010 titled LK-47. [8] This was followed by a string of releases including the sequel mixtape LK-47 Pt. II in 2014 [2] and a self-titled EP in 2015, Leikeli47. [9] In 2015, Leikeli's song "Fuck the Summer Up" was included on Jay-Z's inaugural Tidal self titled playlist. [10]

Leikeli's first full-length debut, Wash & Set , was released on September 8, 2017. [11] It was received positively by critics. Afropunk.com wrote, "the album showcases Leikeli47’s distinctively hard-hitting yet playful lyricism, genre-bending musicianship, and enigmatic character." [12] Darryl Robertson wrote for Vibe , "the dynamic, and featureless, effort is loaded with creativity, vigor and the power of her own feminism. It's evident that Leikeli is aiming to break rules and push boundaries hip-hop." [13]

Acrylic was released on November 15, 2018. [14] The title was inspired by her mixture of southern, Caribbean, and city roots. [5] The first single on the album, "Girl Blunt", was featured on the third season of Insecure [15] and on the first season of The Wilds. [16] The album received positive critical reviews. Jenn Pelly wrote at Pitchfork.com: "Her flow is always gripping, her details novelistic: An aunt sells candy from a windowpane, an extension cord snakes across a hallway, and the lights flicker in an E train tunnel." [15] Dhruva Balram wrote for NME , "At times, and especially on ‘Iron Mike’, Leikeli47 sounds like the best of M.I.A, Cardi B and Kamaiyah rolled into one." [17] Acrylic was named one of NPR's 50 Best Albums of 2018, as well as other lists including Paper Magazine , [18] Esquire, [19] and Forbes. [20] Acrylic is the second part of a planned music trilogy that Leikeli has developed, called the "Beauty Series". [8]

She stated that the next installment to the "Beauty Series" will be called Shape Up. [5] About the theme of beauty salons, she told The Fader , "They're safe havens for all of us — all women, but especially the African-American community. I wanted to create a body of work that spoke to not looking like what you actually are going through." [6] She has stated that she seeks to normalize Black beauty standards, such as decorated fingernails. [21]

Leikeli performed with Pharrell during his I Am Other set at 2017's Complexcon, [22] as well as Natalie Portman's Boston Calling set in 2018, held at Portman's alma mater Harvard University. [23]

Her first headlined tour began in March 2019. [24]

Leikeli47's third album Shape Up was released on May 13, 2022 and received positive reviews. Pitchfork.com gave the album an 8.0 and wrote "The anonymous Brooklyn rapper's third album is a little bolder and a little rawer, but it's her versatility-across hip-hop, ballroom, house, and R&B-that keeps her sound fresh." [25]

In October 2024, Leikeli47 announced her fourth album, Lei Keli ft. 47 / For Promotional Use Only, would be following in the future months. On October 25, 2024, she released 450 as the lead single. The video was shot in black-and-white, and shows Leikeli47 removing her face covering and performing public for the first time. [26] The album was released on 13 June, 2025. [27]

Personal life

Leikeli is known for being private and has not released her legal name or performed without her face covered. [28] In June 2019, she told Cultured Magazine , "Being black, we gotta learn how to wear a mask early." When asked about the meaning to her name in an interview with Snobette, she said that "it’s special to me, but I don’t need to share the reasoning behind it." [29]

According to an interview with Vibe , she conceals her face because "I feel like the Dark Knight, or one of those superheroes, or Superman… the mask, it represents freedom. I'm free with it on." [13]

In 2024, with the release of 450, Leikeli47 removed her face covering. In a press release ahead of her fourth album she stated, "It feels right. It’s time. The mask served its purpose, and now we move forward.” [30]

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Mixtapes

Notes

  1. ↑ Leikeli47 also uses the alias "Hasben Jones", which has been incorrectly reported as her real name. [1]

References

  1. ↑ Rocque, Starr (April 20, 2022). "For Leikeli47, privacy is preference and access is a privilege". Mic . Bustle Digital Group . Retrieved August 30, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 Kramer, Kyle (April 28, 2015). "Invincible Eyes: What's Beneath Leikeli47's Mask?". Vice. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  3. ↑ "Acrylic by Leikeli47". November 15, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2019– via itunes.apple.com.
  4. ↑ "Leikeli47 Refashions Anonymity in Her Own Image". Cultured Magazine. June 18, 2019. Retrieved June 28, 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 "Leikeli47 Is Ready to Give Hip-Hop a New Look". Pitchfork. November 21, 2018. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  6. 1 2 3 "Leikeli47's love letter to black sacred spaces". The FADER. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  7. ↑ "It's been an 'interesting' musical journey for incognito rapper Leikeli47". Chicago Sun Times. March 20, 2019.
  8. 1 2 Chesman, Donna-Claire (November 15, 2018). "Leikeli47 is Truth, Strength, and Love Personified". DJBooth. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  9. 1 2 "Leikeli47". Discogs. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
  10. ↑ "JAY-Z: F**k the Summer Up". TIDAL Browse – High Fidelity Music Streaming. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  11. ↑ "Leikeli47 Is Ready to Give Hip-Hop a New Look". Pitchfork. November 21, 2018. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  12. ↑ "Brooklyn rapper Leikeli47 drops breathtaking debut album and new video "M I L K"". AFROPUNK. September 11, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  13. 1 2 "Leikeli47 Brings Creativity And Vigor On Her Debut Album, 'Wash & Set'". Vibe. September 8, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  14. ↑ Coleman II, C. Vernon (October 30, 2018). "Leikeli47 Shares Release Date for New Album and Three New Song". XXL Mag. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  15. 1 2 Pelly, Jenn. "Leikeli47: Acrylic". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Tune Find Com The Wilds".
  17. ↑ Balram, Dhruva (November 23, 2018). "Leikeli47 – 'Acrylic' review". NME. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  18. ↑ "PAPER's Top 20 Albums of 2018". PAPER. December 17, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  19. ↑ Miller, Matt (November 28, 2018). "The Best Hip-Hop Songs of 2018". Esquire. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  20. ↑ Suarez, Gary. "10 Great Hip-Hop Albums From 2018 You May Have Missed". Forbes. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  21. ↑ Corry, Kristin; Friedlander, Emilie; Ozzi, Dan (November 16, 2018). "An Interview in a Nail Salon with Leikeli47 About Her New Album 'Acrylic'". Noisey. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  22. ↑ "Watch Special Guests 2 Chainz, Lil Uzi Vert, and Migos Surprise the Pigeons & Planes Stage at ComplexCon". Complex. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  23. ↑ "St. Vincent, Zola Jesus to Join Natalie Portman at Boston Calling 2018". Pitchfork. May 16, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  24. ↑ "Invincible Eyes: What's Beneath Leikeli47's Mask?". Vice.com. April 28, 2015. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
  25. ↑ "St. Vincent, Zola Jesus to Join Natalie Portman at Boston Calling 2018". Pitchfork. May 16, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  26. ↑ Brodsky, Rachel (October 25, 2024). "Leikeli47 Unmasks To Announce New Album Lei Keli ft. 47 / For Promotional Use Only". Stereogum. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  27. ↑ "Lei Keli Ft. 47 / For Promotional Use Only". Bandcamp. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
  28. ↑ Bacher, Danielle (September 20, 2016). "Leikeli47 On Using Music as Survival". Paper .
  29. ↑ "Leikeli47 Opens Up About Her Name And The Reason She Wears A Mask". SNOBETTE. July 26, 2016. Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  30. ↑ Brodsky, Rachel (October 25, 2024). "Leikeli47 Unmasks To Announce New Album Lei Keli ft. 47 / For Promotional Use Only". Stereogum. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  31. ↑ "Leikeli47 | Album Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
  32. ↑ Brodsky, Rachel (October 25, 2024). "Leikeli47 Unmasks To Announce New Album Lei Keli ft. 47 / For Promotional Use Only". Stereogum. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  33. 1 2 "Leikeli47 Reveals 'Acrylic' Album Release Date: Stream First 3 Tracks". Vibe. October 24, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2020.

Further reading

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