Miami-area rapper
Denzel Curry balances rhymes packed with intense, introspective content and an evolving production palette that draws on hazy cloud rap and classic hip-hop songcraft. After issuing a series of well-received mixtapes in the early 2010s, he made his official studio debut with 2013's underground favorite Nostalgic 64, later entering the charts for the first time with his 2018 major-label debut,
TA13OO. His rise continued with 2019's
Zuu and a 2020 joint release with
Kenny Beats called
Unlocked. In 2022, he returned with his fifth album, the mature and introspective
Melt My Eyez See Your Future.
Born in Carol City, Florida, to Bahamian and Native American parents,
Curry started writing poetry as an elementary school student, later battle rapping at his local Boys & Girls Club. Influenced as much by
2Pac as
Buju Banton, his lyrical gift and packed bars were combined with his rabid energy on early mixtapes like King Remembered Underground Tape 1991-1995 (2011) and King of the Mischievous South, Vol. 1: Underground Tape 1996 (2012).
Curry benefitted from his role as an affiliate of
SpaceGhostPurrp's Raider Klan, appearing on their Greatest Hits tapes in 2012 and 2013. By the end of high school, he began penning songs that would eventually appear on his debut full-length, Nostalgic 64. The 2013 effort featured
Robb Bank$ and
Odd Future's
Mike G.
Curry followed the critical success of Nostalgic with a double EP titled
32 Zel/Planet Shrooms. His sophomore LP arrived in 2016.
Imperial included the single "Knotty Head" (featuring
Rick Ross), as well as "Zenith" (featuring
Joey Bada$$) and "ULT" (a reworking of his 2015 single "Ultimate"). After leaking a pair of demos on SoundCloud and offering several cryptic posts on social media,
Curry released the
13 EP in June 2017. A string of singles -- "Skywalker," "Sumo," and "Uh Huh" with
IDK -- followed into 2018. That May,
Curry released "Percs," the lead single from his third album,
TA13OO. Split into three acts (Light, Gray, and Dark), the set marked
Curry's first appearance on the charts, entering the Billboard 200 at number 28 upon release.
TA13OO also featured the single "Clout Cobain" and appearances by
GoldLink,
J.I.D., and more.
Following a viral 2019 cover of
Rage Against the Machine's "Bulls on Parade" for Australian Triple J radio,
Curry returned in May of that year with the single "Ricky." Named after his father, it was the first taste of his fourth album,
Zuu, a summer-friendly set influenced by everything that made him, including his hometown, Miami bass music, local Florida rap icons such as
Trick Daddy,
Plies, and
Trina, and his parents. The critically acclaimed set debuted just outside the Top 30 and featured guests
Rick Ross,
Kiddo Marv,
Ice Billion Berg, and more. Months later,
Curry joined producer
Kenny Beats on his online freestyle series, The Cave. The results of that appeared on the joint project
Unlocked. Arriving in early 2020, the brisk set showcased
Curry's deft wordplay and quick wit, and was shortly followed by the highly collaborative
Unlocked 1.5. In 2022,
Curry brought a cosmopolitan sound to his cinematic fifth LP
Melt My Eyez See Your Future, which featured an incredibly diverse range of producers including
Robert Glasper,
JPEGMafia,
Thundercat, and frequent collaborator
Kenny Beats. He was also joined by guests
slowthai,
T-Pain,
Saul Williams,
Rico Nasty,
JID, and many more. ~ Neil Z. Yeung