West Coast Styles

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Cardi B. Makes History As “Bodak Yellow” Goes Diamond

While West Coast Styles is a site with an affinity for the Left Side, we would be remiss not to recognize achievements in Hip-Hop culture as a whole as well. Therefore, it is only right to acknowledge and salute Bronx rapper Cardi B. for making history with her breakout single, “Bodak Yellow.” The song, originally released in June 2017, reached a major milestone yesterday when it was certified diamond, meaning the song has sold over ten million copies. Cardi B is the first female rapper to reach this feat. On its journey to doing so, the song topped the Hot 100 charts in the fall of 2017 and even briefly held the record for the longest solo single by a female rapper to do so (3 weeks) until it was broken by Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” in 2019 (7 weeks).

In addition to this recent history-making event with the J. White Did It-produced single, this is not the first time Cardi B. has been recognized for her trailblazing “first” accomplishments. At the 2019 Grammys, she became the first solo female rapper to win Best Rap Album with Invasion of Privacy. Lauryn Hill won in the same category in 1997, but as part of a group, Fugees, for their massive hit, The Score. And Cardi was the first female rapper to hit 1 billion views on YouTube with the music video, “I Like It.”

In addition to all the positive publicity this achievement has garnered her, she will likely remain in the spotlight for the immediately foreseeable future as she is also scheduled to perform at the 2021 Grammys this upcoming weekend.

Congratulations to @iamcardib, the first female rapper to achieve a RIAA 💎 single award! #BodakYellow @AtlanticRecords https://t.co/D4gDxJorkR

— RIAA (@RIAA) March 9, 2021

Shad Reed

I grew up in Michigan, and graduated from high school in 2005. I then attended Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, where I majored in Music Business and received a Bachelor's of Business Administration Degree. During my time in school there, I began writing for Billboard magazine. And then, after contributing to a Nashville-based music site as a hip-hop correspondent, I was able to transition into a role as a features writer for AllHipHop.com. If Sidney Shaw from 'Brown Sugar' were to ask me, "When did you fall in love with hip-hop?", my answer would be Snoop Doggy Dogg and Coolio in the mid-90s. Therefore, I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to now be at West Coast Styles and be conducting interviews and creating think pieces about how the culture has affected people, politics, and society as a whole. Peace and blessings to all.

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