Atlanta Rapper Bktherula Is Ready For ‘Superstar Status’

SOURCE: washingtonpost.com

Brooklyn Rodriguez, better known as rising Atlanta rap star Bktherula, records her own music. That independence means she can take the studio anywhere, so for her latest album, “Lucy,” she journeyed to Joshua Tree, California.

In a mid-century-modern-style Airbnb complete with a pool, sauna and retro TV, Bk unplugged from social media. Blasting her bass-heavy, dream-pop-inspired tracks as loud as she wanted felt like something from a movie. “Imagine you’re about to record, and you just walk outside,” the 23-year-old artist says on the phone from Atlanta. “It’s the desert, it’s hot, and no one else is there.”

Five songs Bk recorded during that desert reverie made it onto “Lucy.”

The album draws inspiration from the 2014 sci-fi film “Lucy,” in which the main character becomes superhuman, unlocking her full brain capacity and gaining a heightened understanding of the world. Bk says the movie captured her imagination from a young age, and she came to see it as the perfect extension of two previous albums, “LVL5 P1” and “LVL5 P2,” which explore the prospect of ascending to the fifth dimension.

“Lucy” experiments with elements of trap rap, punk rock and melodic ballads, creating a genre-blending project that showcases her versatility as an evolving artist. And, like all her music, it’s shaped by Atlanta — the city’s stacked cadre of artists, its specific ways, wheres and whys.

“Even Waffle House inspires my music,” Bk says, chuckling. “It reminds me of those late nights after underground shows when I’d just pop up and perform. There’s inspiration everywhere here.”

You can hear Atlanta in Bk’s futuristic, synth-based instrumentation and sharp, confident lyrics — and in her hunger to take the stage there a few hours after our call.

“I’m dummy excited for Atlanta tonight. I don’t think anyone understands how excited I am,” she says. “I’m ready to rock the living heck out of that stage — I was just about to cuss, that’s how you know.”

As she levels up her sound, Bk has been studying people she considers “the greats,” analyzing how major artists establish and display themselves. Lately, she’s been dissecting pop star Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet Tour, how Carpenter reveals a new bodysuit every show.

“And the crowd goes wild. People are so excited to go to her next show to see what color the dress is going to be,” Bk says. “I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah, let me write that down.’” And she marvels at how quickly Carpenter rebranded herself from Disney Channel kid into global sensation.

You can hear Atlanta in Bk’s futuristic, synth-based instrumentation and sharp, confident lyrics — and in her hunger to take the stage there a few hours after our call.

“I’m dummy excited for Atlanta tonight. I don’t think anyone understands how excited I am,” she says. “I’m ready to rock the living heck out of that stage — I was just about to cuss, that’s how you know.”

As she levels up her sound, Bk has been studying people she considers “the greats,” analyzing how major artists establish and display themselves. Lately, she’s been dissecting pop star Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet Tour, how Carpenter reveals a new bodysuit every show.

“And the crowd goes wild. People are so excited to go to her next show to see what color the dress is going to be,” Bk says. “I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah, let me write that down.’” And she marvels at how quickly Carpenter rebranded herself from Disney Channel kid into global sensation.

“It took her like one year to become, really, a superstar,” Bk says.

As her own career ascends and she sets out on tour, Bk is reconnecting with the work she loves most. “Now I really enjoy singing onstage,” she says.

And she’s aiming to make Carpenter’s trajectory her own. “I’m hitting superstar status,” she says. “I can feel it in my bones.”