Kamaiyah facts for kids

Kamaiyah Jamesha Johnson (born March 13, 1992) is an American rapper and singer. She is from Oakland, California. Her first mixtape, A Good Night in the Ghetto, came out in 2016. It was very popular and got great reviews.

In 2017, Kamaiyah was chosen as one of the top ten new artists for XXL magazine's "2017 Freshman Class." She released her second mixtape, Before I Wake, later that year. In 2020, she started her own music label called GRND.WRK. She then released her third mixtape, Got It Made, through her new label.

Kamaiyah's Music Journey

Kamaiyah Johnson was born in Oakland, California. She grew up listening to 1990s artists. Some of her favorites were TLC, Missy Elliott, and Aaliyah. These artists inspired her own music style.

Her first song, "How Does It Feel," came out in late 2015. Music critics from Pitchfork and NPR said it was one of the best songs of that year.

First Mixtape Success

Kamaiyah released her first mixtape, A Good Night in the Ghetto, in March 2016. A mixtape is like an album, but often released independently. Many music magazines praised it.

• Complex put it at number 21 on their "50 Best Albums of 2016" list.
• Pitchfork ranked it number 47 on their "50 Best Albums of 2016" list.
• Rolling Stone listed it at number 17 on their "40 Best Rap Albums of 2016."
• The Guardian called it one of the 15 best mixtapes of 2016.

Music videos were made for several songs from the mixtape. These included "How Does It Feel" and "F*ck It Up."

New Opportunities and Challenges

After her first mixtape, Kamaiyah performed at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas. This is a big music festival. In 2016, she also appeared on a song called "Why You Always Hatin?" by YG. Famous rapper Drake was also on this song.

Kamaiyah signed with Interscope Records in 2016. This is a major record label.

In June 2017, XXL magazine chose Kamaiyah for their "2017 Freshman Class." This list highlights ten rising hip-hop artists. Other artists on the list included A Boogie wit da Hoodie and Playboi Carti.

Kamaiyah planned to release another mixtape called Don't Ever Get It Twisted. However, it was delayed and never came out. This happened because of issues with her record label contract. Instead, she released her second mixtape, Before I Wake, by herself in 2017.

Starting Her Own Label

In early 2018, Kamaiyah appeared in a Sprite commercial with basketball star LeBron James.

Later, Kamaiyah left Interscope Records and 4Hunnid Records. This was because her next project, Something to Ride To, kept getting delayed. She decided to take control of her music.

Kamaiyah then started her own music label called GRND.WRK. She released her third mixtape, Got It Made, through her new label in 2020.

On September 18, 2020, Kamaiyah released Oakland Nights. This was an EP (Extended Play) she made with another artist from the Bay Area, Capolow. An EP is shorter than an album. This was her second project released under her own label, GRND.WRK.

In March 2022, Kamaiyah was featured in a music documentary. It was about the Hyphy movement, a style of hip-hop music from the Bay Area. The documentary was called We Were Hyphy. It showed how Kamaiyah and other musicians like G-Eazy were inspired by this music style.

Kamaiyah's Music Releases

Kamaiyah has released several EPs, mixtapes, and singles.

EPs

An EP (Extended Play) is a music release that has more songs than a single but fewer than an album.

Mixtapes

Mixtapes are often free music collections. Artists use them to share new songs with fans.

Singles

A single is usually one or two songs released on their own.

As lead artist

As featured artist

Kamaiyah has also been a featured artist on songs by other musicians.