St. Louis rappers are topping music charts and racking up big streaming numbers. The varied hip-hop acts include Big Boss Vette and Smino — who have both released critically acclaimed albums. Another St. Louis rapper, Jordan Ward, recently performed on NPR’s Tiny Desk.
But the fastest-rising star from St. Louis is arguably Sexyy Red. The north side native is currently on the road performing the “Hood Hottest Princess Tour.” On Monday, the tour’s stop at Chaifetz Arena was full of screaming fans as she shone — by simply being herself.
On Wednesday’s St. Louis on the Air, St. Louis Public Radio reporter Chad Davis, who attended the concert, observed that the St. Louis pride was on full display. “Hip-hop artists from St. Louis have really exploded over the past year. Whenever they have their own shows where they get to come back to the region, you just get a big boost of energy that you may not see for someone not from the St. Louis area,” Davis said.
Sexyy Red, born Janae Wherry, is beloved for her candor with fans in person and online. Her lyrics reflect her unapologetic attitude about her sexuality and lifestyle, which often draws nearly as much criticism as praise. That authenticity has earned her 1 million followers on X, over 16 million monthly listeners on Spotify and features from contemporary hip-hop stars Nicki Minaj and Drake.
Sexyy Red’s fanbase varies, but she’s got the attention of Gen Z. Davis described the crowd at the sold-out concert as: “Very, very young, very diverse. A lot of white people, a lot of black people. It was everybody. After 50 years, hip-hop has become the biggest genre in the world. So you're going to get crowds at a lot of these shows that are pretty diverse that run a wide gamut.”
See more photos from Sexyy Red's performance by photojournalist Brian Munoz below:
For more about Sexyy Red’s meteoric rise to fame listen to St. Louis on the Air on Apple Podcast, Spotify or Google Podcast, or by clicking the play button below.
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Ulaa Kuziez is our production intern. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr. Send questions and comments about this story to talk@stlpr.org.
