Jonatan Aron Leandoer Håstad, known professionally as Yung Lean, is a Swedish rapper, singer and songwriter. Widely cited as one of the most influential figures in the early cloud rap era, Yung Lean rose to prominence in 2013 with his song "Ginseng Strip 2002", which went viral on YouTube. Later that same year, he released his debut mixtape, Unknown Death 2002, and the following year, he released his debut studio album, Unknown Memory.
Steve Thomas Lacy-Moya is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He gained recognition as the guitarist of the alternative R&B band the Internet, which he joined in 2015. His self-produced debut EP, Steve Lacy's Demo (2017), was met with critical praise and became a sleeper hit. Lacy then guest performed alongside Frank Ocean on Tyler, the Creator's 2017 single "911 / Mr. Lonely", which received double platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). That year, he also co-wrote songs for artists including Solange Knowles, Chloe x Halle, and Kendrick Lamar—on his song "Pride".
Maria-Cecilia Simone Kelly, known professionally as Rico Nasty, is an American rapper and singer from Maryland. She began self-releasing content in 2014, while in high school, and had released five solo mixtapes by late 2017. She gained a local, underground following with SoundCloud singles such as "iCarly" and "Hey Arnold". After gaining wider recognition with singles such as "Smack a Bitch" and "Poppin" in 2018, she signed to Atlantic Records where she released her sixth mixtape, Nasty (2018). This was followed by the collaborative mixtape Anger Management (2019) with long time associate Kenny Beats. Rico Nasty's debut studio album, Nightmare Vacation, was released in December 2020. Rico's seventh mixtape, Las Ruinas, was released on July 22, 2022.
Benjamin Reichwald, known professionally as Bladee, is a Swedish rapper, singer, record producer, designer, and member of the artistic collective Drain Gang. Reichwald has released music through the Stockholm record label Year0001 since his debut mixtape Gluee in 2014. In addition to his music, Reichwald creates visual art, which frequently appears as cover art for his releases. Reichwald also serves as the creative director for Yung Lean's clothing line Sadboys Gear.
Drain Gang is a Swedish music collective. Consisting of Bladee, Ecco2k, Thaiboy Digital and producer Whitearmor, the group rose to one of the top Swedish music collectives in the mid-late 2010s. They are known for their frequent collaborations with fellow Swedish rapper Yung Lean and producer Gud.
Thanapat Bunleang, better known by his stage name Thaiboy Digital, is a Thai rapper, singer, producer, and fashion designer. Born in Khon Kaen, Thailand, Bunleang moved to Stockholm, Sweden at the age of eight, and is now based in Bangkok. In addition to his solo work, Bunleang is a member of the group Drain Gang.
Ashton Nicole Casey, known professionally as Ashnikko, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Her 2019 single "Stupid" featuring Yung Baby Tate gained viral popularity on the video-sharing platform TikTok and was certified platinum in the United States and Canada. Ashnikko's debut mixtape, Demidevil, was released in January 2021, and spawned the singles "Daisy" and "Slumber Party". Her studio album, Weedkiller, came in 2023.
Zak Arogundade Gaterud, better known as Ecco2K, is a Swedish-British designer, visual artist, and rapper. He founded Drain Gang with childhood friends Bladee, Thaiboy Digital and Whitearmor in 2013. Having experience with graphics software since he was 5, Arogundade founded the band Krossad with Bladee, his then-classmate, in 2004. Three years later, he founded his first fashion brand, Alaska, and later joined the Swedish shoe brand Eytys. Over the next decade, Ecco2K appeared on albums with Drain Gang and directed music videos before releasing his debut solo studio album, E, in 2019. He went on to release EP PXE in 2021 and Crest in 2022, the latter with Bladee. Arogundade is known as a private and secretive person, and has incorporated queer themes in his work.
Exeter is the third studio album by Swedish rapper Bladee. It was released on 8 April 2020 by YEAR0001. The entirety of the project was produced by Gud. In an interview with Spotify, Bladee revealed that the project was recorded over a week-long period while Gud and Bladee had stayed in Gotland, Sweden.
Hyperpop is a loosely defined electronic music movement and microgenre that predominantly originated in the United Kingdom during the early 2010s. It is characterised by a maximalist or exaggerated take on popular music, and artists within the microgenre typically integrate pop and avant-garde sensibilities while drawing on elements commonly found in electronic, hip hop, and dance music.
333 is the fourth studio album by Swedish rapper Bladee. It was released on July 16, 2020, by YEAR0001, making it Bladee's second release of 2020, following April's Exeter. 333 is notable among Bladee's discography in featuring no collaborations from fellow Drain Gang members Thaiboy Digital and Ecco2K. The album has been associated with the hyperpop microgenre that rose to popularity in 2020, with one writer describing it as "hyperpop-adjacent".
Victoria Beverley Walker, known professionally as PinkPantheress, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. Her songs, which are frequently short in length and include samples of music from the 1990s and 2000s, span a number of genres, including bedroom pop, drum and bass, alt-pop, and 2-step garage.
To Hell with It is the debut mixtape by English musician PinkPantheress, released through Parlophone and Elektra Records on 15 October 2021. The mixtape, which runs for slightly over 18 minutes, features production from PinkPantheress herself, as well as from Oscar Scheller, Izco, Natalia Fletcher, Jkarri, Mura Masa, Zach Nahome, Kairos Laferme, Adam F, and Dill Aitchison. PinkPantheress began posting snippets of her songs to TikTok in early 2021, including "Pain" and "Break It Off", both of which went viral on the platform. She subsequently signed to Parlophone and Elektra Records, through which she released three of the mixtape's singles–"Passion", "Just for Me", and "I Must Apologise".
Spiderr is the eighth studio album by Swedish musician Bladee. It was released on 30 September 2022 via Year0001. The album was announced via Bladee's Instagram on 15 September 2022 and along with the announcement, a song and accompanying video directed by Ecco2K "Drain Story" was shared. Spiderr follows Bladee's and Ecco2K's 2022 collaborative album Crest.
Crest is a collaborative studio album by Swedish musicians Bladee and Ecco2K, released on 17 March 2022 through Year0001. It was recorded in Sweden with producer Whitearmor, close to the recording location of the film The Seventh Seal (1957). A progressive pop album, Crest contains Auto-Tune vocals with lyrics addressing themes of love and friendship, while including multiple references to Christianity and heaven. The track "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" was released as a single in 2020. Crest was considered one of the best albums of the year by The Fader and Anthony Fantano and one of the best progressive pop albums of the year by Pitchfork.
E is the debut solo studio album by Swedish-British singer Ecco2K. A surprise album, it was released on 27 November 2019 through Year0001.
Good Luck is a collaborative album between Swedish musician Bladee and German producer Mechatok. It was released on 10 December 2020 through Year0001. It was preceded by singles "Drama", released on 30 October, and "God", released on 24 November, both followed by music videos. Bladee said that he wanted to do something more approachable, but still true to his expression. A remix of "Drama" by Charli XCX was released on 28 April 2021 and included on the album's deluxe edition.
Trash Island is a collaborative studio album by Swedish collective Drain Gang, released on 12 September 2019 through Year0001. It is performed by Bladee, Ecco2K and Thaiboy Digital, and produced by Whitearmor, with "Acid Rain" and "You Lose" being co-produced by Mechatok and Lusi, respectively. The song "1:1" features Yung Lean.
Ludwig Rosenberg, professionally known as Whitearmor, is a Swedish music producer, multi-instrumentalist, audio engineer and songwriter. He is best known for being a member of the Swedish music group and artist collective Drain Gang. His musical style has been described as softly textured, fluid and terminally online.
Psykos is a collaborative studio album by Swedish musicians Bladee and Yung Lean. A surprise album, it was released on 13 March 2024 through World Affairs. Recorded in Thailand and Sweden, the album was entirely produced by Palmistry and SilentSky. HotNewHipHop highlighted songs "Golden God" and "Enemy", while Paper highlighted "Ghosts".
