With the Los Angeles out of the way, Cardi B headed east to her hometown of New York City. While she was there, the Bronx native linked up with New York royalty, Jadakiss and Fat Joe. During her stop, she made a pit stop at Hot 97 to hear from two artists, one of which made it through to Los Angeles for week two. However, that talented artist didn’t even make it to the top five of our episode two power rankings. Here’s who did make the top five of our New York power rankings.
1. Flawless Real Talk
Similar to the other artists on this list, Flawless Real Talk can rap well and has a unique brand that will be easy to sell to consumers. With that being said, Flawless Real Talk separated himself from the others because he was one of the few contestants who actually came from a region not represented in the auditions. Coming from Providence, Rhode Island, Flawless Real Talk represents a place that we have never seen represented on a large scale in hip-hop.
2. Felisha George
Felisha George is the complete package. She is confident, fearless and a talented rapper. More importantly, she looks and feels different from any other artist in this competition. As Chance and Cardi touched on in their critiques of other contestants, this is a business as well as an art form. Felisha George’s fashion sense and personality are easy to sell. Better yet, there’s no one in her lane within this competition.
3. Savannah Hannah
As Cardi B pointed out, Savannah Hannah has a presence that reminds us of a friend that we all have. As a result, it’s easy to want to see someone like that win. Furthermore, her performance had a few quotable lines that could easily be Instagram captions. In a social media driven industry, that’s a major selling point as well. Not to mention, the crowd’s support is ultimately what got her Cardi B’s approval. In this day and age, people are buying into people more than they are buying into their music. Savannah Hannah has talent and she’s relatable. If I’m an executive, I’m buying into that immediately.
4. Cakes Da Killa
Yes, he’s gay, but he’ll out rap all of these other MCs in a heartbeat. More importantly, Cakes Da Killa displayed a level of confidence that is rare not only in new artists but in seasoned artists as well. Heading into week two, it’ll be interesting to see if he gets a chance to shine in the rap battle portion of the auditions. Given his rapping ability, he’ll probably embarrass a few people. With that being said, he could improve upon his breath control. Other than that, there’s not much separating him from those in the top three.
5. Beanz
Beanz is the embodiment of the saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” If you look at her sub 5’0 frame, you would think she has a light voice and a gentle flow. In contrast, she has one of the most distinct voices and flows in the competition. She has the type of voice that you could never confuse for anyone else’s. While Cardi B didn’t love her stage presence, it appeared that the crowd was into her and her presence. Going forward, Beanz will flourish in a cypher type setting and a rap battle. She will be a problem in week two.
