Netflix Finds Their ‘Rhythm & Flow’

Netflix+Finds+Their+Rhythm+%26+Flow

Lanie Gatson, Contributing Writer

Rappers Cardi B, Chance The Rapper and T.I are hitting Netflix with a new competition reality show titled, “Rhythm & Flow.” The show will feature underground hip-hop artists competing for a chance at a record label. The competition-reality show combination is the first of its kind on the popular streaming service.

The multi-city music competition series is set to premiere in the fall of 2019 and has begun their country-wide auditions. Included stops are the judges’ hometowns of Atlanta, Chicago and New York. Each audition city will feature guest celebrity mentors who also hail from that city. In addition to the celebrity judges, the 10-time Grammy Award-winning artist John Legend will be the show’s producer. At this point, it is unclear if he will take on a larger role with the show.

T.I’s vision of the show includes stopping everywhere to find the next best rapper.

“We’re going to travel the country and all the hoods, all the studios, all the nightclubs, even the barbershops to find the next, unreleased, underground hip-hop superstar,” T.I. said.

The Atlanta-based rapper has released nine studio albums throughout his career. Meanwhile, Cardi B, a superstar still on the rise, is optimistic that there are worthy contestants out there. One thing the Bronx-born rapper promised is that she will be an “honest judge.”

“Sometimes I might really like somebody, or sometimes somebody might have that face, like, ‘Oh, I don’t wanna break their heart, but I gotta tell them the truth,'” Cardi B said.

The female rapper has earned three number-one singles on the US Billboard 100. “Bodak Yellow,” made her the second female rapper to top the chart following Lauren Hill in 1998.

Chance The Rapper’s 2016 mixtape, “Coloring Book,” also set unprecedented records. For an independent artist, it earned him three Grammy Awards, including Best Rap Album. This became the first streaming-only album to win a Grammy Award.

While these artists are no strangers to reality television, to see them in a more influential role than previous showings should be exciting. All three names are prominent in hip-hop, and specifically, Cardi B and Chance aren’t far removed from that “hunger” state as a young artist. They’ll be judging people in a position that they were in not long ago, which makes for another exciting element.