MAVI

One of the most unique rappers of any scene, North Carolina’s Mavi exudes conscientiousness and charisma. He started turning heads as a teenager for his poetic flow and laid-back delivery, and he only got better with time, issuing some of the genre’s most thoughtful releases of the late 2010s and early 2020s.

Inspired by everything from Toni Morrison to the teachings of the Five-Percent Nation, he started tinkering with music in earnest while studying neuroscience at Howard University. Mixtapes Beacon (2016) and No Roses (2017) were followed by 2019’s Let the Sun Talk, his breakthrough debut album. Lyrically compared to heroes like MF Doom, Andre 3000, and Earl Sweatshirt — the latter of whom produced a few tracks on the album — the debut radiated with unique turns of phrase and at times existential thoughts on race, class, and identity that didn’t go over listeners’ heads.