Navigating the space which success skyrockets you to can often be met with imposter syndrome. A come-up so spectacular can have you gripping your seat and praying the highs of award shows, red carpets, and nods from your OG fave never end. With two Grammy nominations – for Best Rap Album and Best Rap Song – under his belt, Cordae has officially entered his mid-20s, an aspect of which is said to complete the brain’s pre-frontal development. This is the area of the brain that lets us make decisions and develop our capacity for delayed gratification, as well as the capacity to think things through logically.
On this particular morning, Cordae kicks off his morning routine, cordially inviting me into his innermost thoughts; cogitation of his surroundings, a blueprint of the next five years, a homage to friends, and a sprint race to unimpeachable greatness. What else would we expect from Cordae; who was voted Most Likely To Be Famous in his middle school yearbook?
Having made his first mixtape at 15, music was always the mind-stimulating option for him. The Maryland rapper presented himself as a lyricist on his first two albums, ‘The Lost Boy’ and ‘From A Bird’s Eye View’ — a young rhymer that credits some of the greats for inspiring his approach to the craft. Albeit bred in Raleigh, Cordae has adopted Maryland as his formation story, often making reference to Maryland and the wider DMV area’s preservation of some of the most diverse roster of artists. In the process, this has landed the go-getter a seat amongst names like Wale, Goldlink, Shy Glizzy, and Rico Nasty. Each talented in their own right, the fruition of the list is laced in the dust left by other DMV legends such as Chucky Thompson, Marvin Gaye and Rich Harrison.
At a stage of in-between, Cordae longs for his gold-dusting accreditation in his genre, but with age, his wider reading has on-boarded a lust for greater knowledge. His first step into this sector has included Ted Talks and philanthropic work.
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Cordae, what does the term ‘hometown hero’ mean to you?
Hometown hero to me, from a more basic standpoint, is just somebody that the local kids can look up to. Somebody that gives the locals in their hometown hope, faith, and belief in the future. Not to sound cliche, but it’s somebody that gives the youth hope that you can actually do this shit, you know what I’m saying? Whatever that shit is to you, you can fucking do it at the highest level – if you want to – because it’s always cooler to see people from your local area excel at the highest level. That dude went to a Middle School that I’m familiar with or that dude went to the same High School as me, or just our High School’s rival.
The other meaning is actually providing an opportunity to give back. I’d say like, back to the hometown doing shit. Things like Thanksgiving… this is just minimal shit. Like, basic toy drives, maybe putting a couple kids in college, y’know? I’m providing back to school drives, turkeys, Christmas drives, paying for college, high school, whatever… or just being an open ear and a helping hand. But sometimes the first is more powerful. Representation. Stefon Diggs is mine, that boy from Maryland – that gives me pride.
I was actually just about to ask you that, who are some of your Maryland heroes?
I’m gonna say you got Stefon Diggs, you got Chase Young, Shy Glizzy – he’s from D.C so it doesn’t really count. I think Wale, Brent Faiyaz, Rico Nasty. You got hella hometown heroes. Shout out Big Flock. Because as a highschooler it’s cooler to listen to the hometown artists than the super big mainstream. If somebody plays a real big mainstream artist where I’m from niggas be like “yo, what the fuck are you doing?”
I wanna shout out Goonew was a hometown hero, may he rest in peace – we went to the same middle school.
Do you think you are?
For sure I am, Thandie. I’m not finna play.
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You’re similar to me, I’ve just turned 25 in July and you did in August. How are you looking at growing pains and the five-year gap to 30?
Yeah, and I’m going to do them all. I’m going to do an arena tour – headlining – before 30. I’m going to have a certain amount of money before 30… I might have 30 million before 30! Not just from the heinous sense of money being super important but just for more like a comfortability standpoint.. and a I-can-fucking-do-this for another standpoint, y’know what I’m saying? I was just saying this in the studio yesterday: how much can you do without a platform, money and support? How much good can you do if you don’t have a platform and people don’t care about what you’re saying? Put money into the equation. I feel like you can help more people and fucking make more real change and impact- but you don’t need it. But it doesn’t fucking hurt, either.
I don’t want to limit myself. I might even get 50 mill before 30 to be honest. Again not sounding heinous – money isn’t the fucking root of all my joy, and it isn’t why I do what I do. I want to make two good solid albums that impact culture and win me some Grammys. These are just all my goals. I’m gonna do it too.
What do you dislike the most about the world right now?
I don’t want to sound preachy or pretentious, right? But a lot of fucked up shit is going on in the world, right. The mistreatment of Black people. One, because that’s just a worldly thing. That’s still super prominent, but people only care when it’s like a trendy thing. You know what I’m saying? Summer 2020 everybody was on that pro-Black shit, like, “what can we do to help the underprivileged minority community”… and now nobody gives a fuck anymore because it’s not trendy.
I ask entertainers what they are willing to sacrifice for the good of Black people. Rosa Parks and them, them niggas didn’t catch a bus four years – they walked. That’s inconvenient as fuck. I don’t know if people would do it for four years… people today are less likely and less willing to inconvenience themselves.
In reference to the Maryland rapper Simba, who is currently serving six years into a 24 year sentence. You’ve shown support in the past, but is it still Simba?
Oh, absolutely.
Is it still free TMAC?
Absolutely. Still free the dogs. It’s free Gunna and Thug, too. Those really my mans too – its free the whole YSL camp.
You always show support for people around you, and it always feels like a win for you involves a whole camp. Why do you do that?
Because it’s just the real nigga shit to do. Me shouting free Simba on the Jimmy Fallon show is because you can watch that show in there. That’s some shit that will make his day, why not? And that’s just the bro. It’s free the guys out them cages. Simba’s going to be home real soon. And it’s going to be dangerous.
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You recently did a TED Talk, you’re getting fancy! Talk to me about that.
So the TED Talk well, more. So let me just give you a background, how it came about. Or I guess my mind frame around that time… honestly, when I first got the opportunity, when they reached out and said they wanted me to do a talk… I’m like, man, I don’t know if I’m successful enough to give a TED Talk! Then I was being hard on myself. And I thought, you know what, I’m gonna do it now! Because when I’m like, super duper, undeniably on my megastar shit… I might be older. And I might be a little more jaded. And I might do differently. So I’m like, yo, this is gonna be a dope timestamp on my life and career and I’ve done cool shit in my life and career, y’know what I’m saying? So it was like, I can fucking give a TED Talk!
What does spirituality mean to you?
It’s just being intuitive with oneself. Just knowing yourself. Being in tune with higher power… whatever that means to you.
In your earliest lyrics you once said: “I’m chasing 20s, Benjamins, and breaking barriers too / My family rich for generations…” do these ethics still apply?
The thing you said before about bringing friends up. It’s about bringing the right ones up, too. I guess the key being knowing your personnel, knowing the people around you, what they’re good at and what they’re also not good at. Because you can bring the wrong friends around and they fuck up your business. Because they’re not well equipped. So I don’t want any creators out there to feel guilty? If like they tried to bring their friends in and they did an ass job…!
You used to work at TGI and now you do Ted Talks, has anything stayed consistent?
You know, the only thing that’s consistent in my life is the peaks and the valleys.
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Words: Thandie Sibanda // @thandd
