Lucifena is making history — she’s the first-ever female rock signee to Lil Wayne’s Young Money label. As an extra seal of approval, the rap superstar also guests on her new single, the hardcore rager “Tyrant.”
The song and the signing are the culmination of a long journey for Lucifena. She cut her teeth in the 2010s post-hardcore band You Only Live Once and went viral with a screamed performance on American Idol.
Since going solo, her music has been marked by big-name collaborations — her debut single, 2018’s “On Sight,” features emo-rap icon Lil Xan, and her 2019 song “Falling” (which premiered on RevolverMag.com) boasts guest turns by Slipknot’s Sid Wilson and Bad Omens’ Noah Sebastian. Now, she’s back with her biggest collab yet, “Tyrant” with Weezy.
“Getting the opportunity of a lifetime to work with a legend like Lil Wayne was such a blessing,” Lucifena enthuses. “To have him get on a hardcore song was insane, and I’m beyond grateful he was willing to break boundaries and not give a fuck what anyone thinks.
“Merging rap and metal genres together was something I always strived to do in my music — and to do it with one of the greats is a dream come true. YOUNG MONEY BITCH, WE’RE TAKING OVER!”
Shortly ahead of the single’s release, Revolver talked to Lucifena about the epic new chapter in her continuing evolution.
How does it feel to be the first female rock artist signed to Young Money?
LUCIFENA To be the first female rock artist on Young Money is such a blessing. I wanna represent for the genre of music I come from and show out and push pop culture in a new direction! I appreciate Lil Wayne for believing in me and letting me be a part of Young Money is a fucking honor. I’m forever grateful for this opportunity.
How did Lil Wayne discover you?
Lil Wayne found me online and heard some of my music, reached out, and then me and my sister Ariel met in person at his studio and instantly clicked discussing heavy music and talking about life and my story of getting into music. Wayne was the most humble, down-to-earth person ever for being such an icon. It was like I was talking to a longtime friend when we first met. I was so grateful to meet him and have the chance to tell him my story.
Then I got the chance to send him a bunch of new demos I’ve been working on the last few years, and he gravitated towards one of my songs, specifically, “Tyrant.” I got a surprise text one afternoon from Wayne playing a guitar solo on it and was in complete shock and excitement! I then forced myself to get the courage to ask him if he wanted to ever put down a verse, feel free to and do his own version of “Tyrant.” He said alright and then I received a verse. I was so happy I could cry because it was the sickest shit I’ve ever heard and knew we just collaborated on something special.
It’s been five years since we talked to you. Back then you were doing more of a trap-metal sound. What have you been up to in the years since, and how has your music evolved?
Yes, it’s been some years since we last talked and I’ll always appreciate Revolver for supporting me and my music, so I wanted to say thank you guys for that!
Yes, my sound has evolved. I always wanted to experiment and mix genres, and it went from trap metal to what is coming now with “Tyrant.” Coming from the post-hardcore world as a kid in a band, I wanted to go different places with heavy music and push it the boundaries. It’s been a decade of blood, sweat and tears to get to this point, but that’s what makes my sound truly authentic, and I will continue to always be my unapologetic self as an artist. I will always innovate and do my thing.
Young Money rock shit is a new era so get ready cuz me and Wayne got more crazy stuff coming!
The video shoot must have been insane. Any good stories from it?
The video shoot was so much fun. I had so many homies pull up and my band absolutely crushed it. My sister Ariel — who plays bass and sings in my live band — and I were just looking at each other when we were playing with Wayne and had a “we did it” moment. We couldn’t believe this was finally happening, it was so surreal!
What’s up next for you?
What’s next is a full-length album I’ve been working with all my friends that are incredible musicians and producers KingCold, Will Ventres, Bassgawd, MorgothBeatz, Ricky P and more. More incredible collaborations are coming. I will also be on a U.S. tour with Lil Wayne this summer with the rest of the Young Money crew!