Cloud rap (also known astrillwave) is asubgenre ofhip-hop that emerged in the late 2000s to early 2010s, drawing influences fromtrap,ambient andnew age music to create a hazy, dreamlike, atmospheric and relaxed production style through the extensive use of reverb and etherealchopped samples. The subgenre was originally pioneered by artists and producers such asA$AP Rocky,Lil B,Clams Casino,Friendzone,Whitearmor,Main Attrakionz,Viper,Metro Zu, andSpaceGhostPurrp.

In 2010,music blogger Walker 'Walkmasterflex' Chambliss coined the term "cloud rap" in ablogspot post describing the music ofMain Attrakionz member Squadda B, whom he labelled "the king of cloud rap".^[5] Chambliss thought he was using a phrase from a 2009 interview by music writer Noz, where rapperLil B showed him aCGI image of a castle in the clouds and said "that's the kind of music I want to make."^[5][6] He later used the term for the Space Age Hustle blog's compilation album,3 Years Ahead: The Cloud Rap Tape released in 2010, which helped popularize the genre.^[7]

The label "cloud" denotes distinct characteristics of the genre such as its "hazy", ethereal aesthetic (in terms of both aural and visual expression) and its ambiguity as a genre without clearly defined borders.^[8]

Cloud rap is defined by the use of ethereal,psychedelic and soft samples as well as the inclusion oftrap style drums, drawing primary influences fromlo-fi hip-hop andchillwave.^[5] The genre's production style draws heavily from general mellow and relaxed sounds that are atypical totraditional hip-hop such asambient andnew age music, while esoteric melodicchopped samples have been lifted fromJ-pop,video game music andanime soundtracks.^[5][9]

Cloud rap's lyrics sometimes revolve around themes of love and betrayal, as well as more typical themes found in popular music such as sex, drugs, and alienation.^[10]

Cloud rap pulls from a diversity ofrap sounds and locales: from both theEast andWest Coasts andthe South.^[9] In particular, cloud rap often utilizes looped samples fromdowntempo,ambient,new age andchillout music, as well as British female singers such asSade andImogen Heap.^[9] Often, cloud rap is released independently ofrecord labels, and cloud rap artists rely on internet services (such asSoundCloud,YouTube, andTwitter) to distribute and promote their music.

Cloud rap production is characterized by etherealsynths, reverb-heavy beats, distorted samples, and achopped,lo-fi musical style.^[11][6] The genre leans heavily into melody, blending elements from various genres while maintaining a strong connection to hip-hop. With many of the genre's pioneers taking major influences fromwitch house andchillwave, many artists have producers in common likeClams Casino, 90's Bambino, andSpaceGhostPurrp.^[12][13]

Cloud rap originated in theSouthern United States during the late 2000s.^[5][7] Elements of cloud rap appear as early as the 1990s, with the influence of theHouston andMemphis rap scene,^[14] as well as in the early 2000s withClouddead'sself-titled album which later inspired the Californian groupMain Attrakionz.^[15][16][17] During the late 2000s, artists such asLil B and producerClams Casino, became key influences on the development of cloud rap, with the duo pioneering the sound as early as 2008.^[18] Other early developments included the undergroundFinnish rap scene and the work of Houston rapperViper.^[19]

By 2010, Squadda B of Main Attrakionz,^[20]Friendzone and South Florida actsSpaceGhostPurrp^[21][22] andMetro Zu,^[23] were tagged cloud rap by online music critics and bloggers, though many artists expressed dislike for the term and distanced themselves from it.^[5][24] Cloud rap garnered mainstream attention in 2011 with rapperASAP Rocky's debut mixtape,Live. Love. ASAP, which saw partial production credits from Clams Casino.^[9][25][26]

In 2013, Swedish artistYung Lean became an eminent cloud rap artist when the video for his single "Ginseng Strip 2002" went viral.^[10][26] Notable producers who worked with Lean such asYung Gud,Whitearmor andSuicideyear alongsideonline rap collectiveDrain Gang, consisting ofBladee,Ecco2K,Thaiboy Digital, andWhitearmor would also be influential in shaping the genre.^[27][28] Bladee has also citedJames Ferraro as an influence, noting his work under the pseudonymBEBETUNE$.^[29]

Around the same time, otheronline rap collectives contributed to the genre’s development, such asRaider Klan (featuring SpaceGhostPurrp andDenzel Curry),^[14]ASAP Mob led by ASAP Rocky,^[9]Black Kray’s Goth Money,^[30] Seshollowaterboyz (Bones,Xavier Wulf,Chris Travis and Eddy Baker),^[31] andGothBoiClique (includingYung Bruh andWicca Phase Springs Eternal).^[10] Other influential artists includeNight Lovell,^[32] and the early work ofPlayboi Carti.^[33]

By the late 2010s, the influence of cloud rap splintered off into various other genres such asemo rap,^[34]digicore,^[35] andrage.^[34]

During the early 2020s, a new wave of artists drew influences from the original cloud rap era merging the sound with contemporaneous styles such asplugg music and variousmicrogenres such asjerk,sigilkore^[36] andhexd. The work of artists such asXaviersobased,^[37]Fakemink,^[38] and Smokedope2016 have been described as "cloud rap".^[39]

• Internet rap

• 2000s in music
• 2010s in music
• 2010s fads and trends
• American styles of music
• Hip-hop genres
• Lo-fi music
• Chillwave
• Trap music
• Microgenres
• Cloud rap
• 21st-century music genres

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