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2021 Made In America - Day 1

Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty

Baby Keem burst onto the scene on the heels of his vibed-out hit single “Orange Soda” but many put a focus on his relationship with Kendrick Lamar ahead of his artistry at times. Now, the Carson rapper is poised to create his own waves as his debut album The Melodic Blue drops this Friday (September 10) and boasts three features from the Compton great.

The Melodic Blue will come out on Lamar and Dave Free’s pgLang imprint and looks to be the first of many upcoming moves of K-Dot in the executive role. Many have already heard or seen the video for Baby Keem’s “Family Ties” which featured the cousins trading bars and now two other songs, “Range Brothers” and “Vent” also have features from Kendrick Lamar.

In other parts of the world where the time zone has already leaped to the next day, the album is available and the songs have made their way online. On “Range Brothers” in particular, Lamar can be heard saying the refrain “top of the morning” over and over atop a bass-heavy track. We’ve decided collectively to wait until the full body of work is available here in the United States before giving it a full listen.

Baby Keem, 20, got his start in music around 2017 under his birth-given name, Hykeem Carter, beginning with the Oct EP. In 2018, Keem delivered his first mixtape, The Sound Of Bad Habit, via The Orchard and Sony labels. 2019’s Die For My B*tch” featured the aforementioned “Orange Soda” and propelled Keem into the conversation of up and coming artists to watch ahead of being named an XXL Freshman in 2020.

Photo: Getty