Sade Palmer

Features Editor

Belcalis Almanzar, better known as Cardi B, is on her way to the top, and everyone is loving it. Huge artists such as Janet Jackson and Beyoncé have shown their support to the new rapper this year. With her smash hit “Bodak Yellow,” Cardi is now on everyone’s playlist. She’s a former cast member on VH1’s Love and Hip Hop New York, and is the breakout star of the series. Joining the cast in its sixth season, Cardi made a huge impression on fans for being true to herself, never backing down, and admitting to her past of being a dancer. After two seasons on the show, she announced she would be leaving to further pursue her music career. Considering the success of “Bodak Yellow,” one could say that it was a great decision for the rapper.

Released June 16, 2017Bodak Yellowis the first number one song for Cardi and it also made history by being one of the biggest songs this year. It spent its first week as the most streamed song in the country. With 40.8 million domestic streams in the tracking week, the song remained at the top of on-demand streaming songs. She is the second woman to lead the charts this year, following Taylor Swift. This also makes Cardi the first female rapper to attain number one on the chart in over three years since Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda” in 2014. Cardi is also now the first woman to lead the R&B/ hip-hop chart in nearly a year, and the first female rapper to reach number one as a non-featured artist. She’s also the first artist in 2017 to reach number one with their first charting song.

Cardi B was nominated for two BET awards earlier in the year, and recently nominated for nine BET Hip Hop Awards. This puts her at the top of the nomination lists for this year, including Single of the Year, MVP of the Year, and Best New Hip Hop Artist. Cardi B deserves all the recognition she is receiving this year.