Image via Getty/Bennett Raglin
YBN Cordae just might be the voice of the future. The young rapper has only been in the game for a few years, but he already understands the value of his platform and he’s looking to make a difference through his music.
Born Cordae Dunston in 1997 in North Carolina, his family relocated to Suitland, Maryland when he was growing up. At just 15 years old, Cordae decided to give his rap career a try, and he has cited OGs like Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, and more as early influences.
He showed promise on early mixtapes like 2014’s Anxiety and 2016’s I’m So Anxious, which were full of thoughtful and creative songs that incorporating funny anecdotes into commentary on current events and pop culture. But it wasn’t until 2018 that Cordae achieved widespread attention with his remixes and freestyles over classic rap songs (we’ll get into that later).
Along with the release of his debut solo album, The Lost Boy, it’s time to run through the most important facts about YBN Cordae that you need to know.
He used to be known as Entendre
Before he was YBN Cordae, Dunston performed under the stage name, Entendre. He released three mixtapes under that moniker—Anxiety (2014), I'm So Anxious (2016), and I'm So Anonymous (2017)—before he joined the YBN collective. Cordae rarely talks about those days or his previous rap name, but he told Complex in 2018 that Entendre was the “worst rap name in history.”
He studied mass communications at Towson University in Maryland
After graduating from high school in 2015, Cordae went to college at Towson University in Maryland, where he studied mass communications. He later dropped out in 2018, stating that college was “bigger than him” and that he only went because of his mother.
His career was kickstarted by remixes of hip-hop classics
Cordae first gained national attention for his creative remixes of OG classics. His remix of Eminem’s 1999 single, “My Name Is,” went viral in May 2018. While it wasn’t technically a remix of a classic, Cordae’s response to J. Cole’s “1985” also went viral that spring, launching him into the public’s consciousness. He has also freestyled over popular songs including Kendrick Lamar’s “Duckworth” and Method Man and Redman’s “Da Rockwilder.”
He always knew he was going to bridge the gap between the new and old generations in rap
Cordae has often been referred to as a “middle child” in the hip-hop community, bridging the generational gap between rookies and OGs. While that may seem like a big role to have, Cordae says he doesn’t feel pressured by it. “I always knew I was gonna do that,” he told HotNewHipHop in July 2018. “I set my own goals higher than what anybody else has set for me.”
Speaking with Pigeons & Planes about rap's generational divide, he explained, “We're arguing and shit, but at the end of the day, we all look the same to the police. The old heads look like the young niggas to the police. We all go through the same struggles and we're all under the same oppressors. Not to sound like Huey from The Boondocks and shit, but it's real. At the end of the day it's like, why are we arguing with each other? Why are we going through this generational shit when there's bigger shit at hand? Y'all are supposed to be our guiding forces and the people we can go to for shit.”
He used to work at TGI Fridays
Before he became a rapper, YBN took a number of odd jobs. The most notable was his position at a local T.G.I Fridays in Maryland. In an interview with Adam 22 of No Jumper, he revealed that he hated the job and always knew he “was meant to do something bigger.”
He describes his sound as ‘soulful’
If you ask Cordae about his sound, he has he makes soulful music that is relatable. “I make that shit that touches your soul, that the average human being can relate to,” he told Pigeons & Planes in May 2018. There's no way I’ma play this shit if you not about to nod yo head to it, and you not about to feel that shit in your soul and in your heart of hearts. It brings out certain emotions.” He also mentioned that he wants his music to resonate with college kids or people who are going through hard times and are looking to escape: “I want my music to make you reminiscent or nostalgic of your childhood, or take you back to a better place.”
Dr. Dre is his mentor
Cordae considers Dr. Dre to be one of his mentors. After he grew up listening to Dre’s records, he got an opportunity to link with the legendary producer in the studio. After a photo of the duo made its way around social media in August 2018, Cordae told Billboard that working with Dre is “like going through basketball drills.” He added, “I felt myself getting better by the hour. That’s a mentor of mine. He had all his Grammy plaques, and I’ve never seen one in person before, which was motivational.”
He changed elementary schools seven times
YBN Cordae was never in one space for too long when he was growing up. Cordae told Complex in a 2018 interview that his family frequently moved around for work, which forced him to change schools and make new friends. “I went to seven different elementary schools,” he said. Despite the constant relocating, Cordae said that it made it “easy for me to adapt.”
He rose to fame as part of the YBN crew, which he refers to as a family
YBN Cordae entered the public's consciousness as part of a larger collective. The YBN gang (which stands for Young Boss Niggas) includes Nahmir and Almighty Jay, Glizzy, Manny, Seylonne, and Simmons. Cordae has said that the clique is like a family. “Those are my brothers for real, and they got a lyrical force field around them now,” he told Pigeons & Planes in September 2018.
He wants his music career to start change and help others
YBN Cordae didn’t get into the music business just to make money. Sure, the cash may have been a factor, but he also stated that he wanted to help people with his massive platform. “I just want to use my voice and my platform to help people. Whether it be political or therapeutic,” he told Complex. “Sometimes, when I’m having a bad day when some fucked up shit happens, it’s the artists that I listen to that help me get through. I’d like to be the same thing for other people.”
He has an interesting take on the ghostwriting conversation
YBN Cordae writes every bar he records, but he doesn’t necessarily have a problem with ghostwriters. “I would never have anyone write my shit,” he clarified on an episode of Everyday Struggle, taking pride in his penmanship. As for other artists who use outside help, Cordae suggests it’s their business and not as harmful to hip-hop as the public makes it seem. “I don’t pay attention to what other people got going on,” he continued. “They eating. If the music is dope, let them use writers… For other people, it’s like, ‘Yo, if I can bounce off ideas to get other people on it, whatever.’”
He’s a big fan of Mac Miller
Cordae cites Mac Miller as one of the main rappers he listened to before he got in the game. He revealed that he listened to many of Mac’s earlier projects, as well as 2018’s Swimming, the last project the Pittsburgh native recorded before he passed away in September of the same year. “I was a huge Mac Miller fan,” Cordae told Billboard in July 2019. “He was straight ill. Even going back to his old mixtapes like The High Life. He’s been in the game since a youngin’, that’s how big his stamp is. He grew as an artist and truly evolved every album on some funkadelic shit.”
He’s a Puma Youth Ambassador
In Mar. 2019, Cordae was announced as Puma’s new Youth Brand Ambassador, joining the likes of Meek Mill, Big Sean, Gunna, and G-Eazy at the apparel company. In addition to extending the reach of the footwear brand into the streetwear space, Cordae also revealed on Everyday Struggle that he has reached out to his middle school and high school in the DMV-Metropolitan area to hook their basketball teams up with some new gear.
He was rumored to have dated tennis champ Naomi Osaka
Cordae is rumored to have had a love match with U.S. Open champion, Naomi Osaka. In April 2019, fans speculated about a possible romance between the two after Cordae was spotted in a video on Osaka’s Instagram account. TMZ Sports later reported that the two were not a couple just yet, but they were very close to making it official. It’s still unclear whether the two simply enjoyed spending time together or if Cupid was playing matchmaker.