Kidd Kenn, the 18-year-old rap phenom hailing from Chicago, joined peers DJ Hed, Toosii, Lakeyah, and Symba for the award show’s iconic rap cypher freestyle battle Thursday night on BET. (You can see that over here. Sorry, couldn’t get it up on the page but it's too good not to miss).

“When my community sees me in the cypher they’re going to gag!” says Kidd Kenn. “They’re going to be so excited because I know they’ve been waiting for me to literally do what I have to do for the community and that’s all I came to do – to represent and do the best I can do. I really feel like I was born for this. No pressure at all! They need something like this – something fresh, something cute. Look at me! This is my first major red carpet and I couldn’t have asked for a better stage than BET. I’m a Rapper so being part of the Hip Hop Awards Rap Cypher is huge. I want people to hear me rap.”

Aside from his hard-hitting flows, Kidd Kenn’s appearance is also one for the history books. He makes BET history as the first openly gay rapper to join the BET Hip Hop Awards Rap Cypher.

His latest EP PROBLEM CHILD, released via 4th & Broadway/Island Records, soared onto streaming platforms earlier this year on the wings of its four previously released tracks: “Gold Digger'' featuring Dess Dior; "Freestyle," Kidd Kenn’s viral col­lab­oration with Delli Boe (watch video here); "Get Lit", which was featured in the Madden '22 Soundtrack; “Moves” featuring Rico Nasty, which was synced in an Apple Watch Series 6 online ad; and his song and "Good Day". The EP also includes the tracks “B4” and “Problem.”

STREAM THE MADDEN NFL SOUNDTRACK NOW!

KIDD KENN “MOVES” FEAT. RICO NASTY FEATURED IN APPLE WATCH SERIES 6 ONLINE AD

Last year, Kidd Kenn was nominated for a GLAAD award for “Outstanding Breakthrough Artist.” He also made headlines when he was selected for GLAAD’s prestigious list of “20 Under 20: Young LGBTQ People Shaping The Future of Media and Activism,” presented by Teen Vogue. Check it out HERE. Kidd Kenn’s feature in OUT Magazine’s influential OUT100 List can be found HERE.  

His single “Good Day” was featured in a Target x NY Pride ad, which launched in June, supported by Kidd Kenn’s gala performance at the Youth Pride/NYC Pride virtual festival sponsored by Target. 

The buzz behind Kidd Kenn has been explosive, with PAPER, Fader, XXL, Hot New Hip Hop, Nylon, Teen Vogue, Office Magazine, Interview Magazine, and other tastemakers all rallying behind the young artist. Nylon called him a “rap phenom,” and Fader dubbed him “Chicago’s Next Teen Sensation.” Kidd Kenn’s huge organically grown web following includes over 270k Instagram followers, over 1.5 million video views on YouTube, a half-million followers on TikTok, and over 5 million likes. PROBLEM CHILD is the follow-up to CHILD'S PLAY, Kidd Kenn’s first EP, released last year.

ABOUT KIDD KENN

Individuality induces creativity. Straight out of the gate, Kidd Kenn asserted himself as an individual and has advanced hip-hop forward in the process. Rocking ever-changing hair color, bold and bright fashion, and an outsized personality, the 18-year old rapper from Chicago’s Southside flaunts confidence for days but backs it up with razor-sharp rhymes and hard-hitting hooks.

Kidd Kenn started writing his own raps just four years ago and soon discovered an unparalleled joy for performance. He emerged as a pioneer in the Chicago community, and an important figure in hip-hop in general, debuting with his Childish EP in 2018. His huge organically grown web following has over 250k Instagram followers and over 1.5 million video views on YouTube. Moreover, he has over 520k TikTok followers and 5.3 million likes. 

“When you hear what I’m doing, I want you to know everything is possible,” says the young MC who encodes a message in his music. “Be yourself. Don’t let anyone stop you from doing what you want to do. That’s just something I always did. You can’t get stuck on anything or what anybody says. I learned how to not care about opinions and be myself. You need to feel like that bitch!” As more artists become comfortable in their own skin, embracing their authentic selves in the hip-hop landscape, they will continue to look to Kenn to lead the pack and break the mold.

KEEP UP WITH KID KENN:

WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | YOUTUBE | SOUNDCLOUD | TIKTOK