Kamaiyah facts for kids

Kamaiyah Jamesha Johnson (born March 13, 1992), known as Kamaiyah, is an American rapper and singer from Oakland, California. She is famous for her fun, 90s-inspired hip hop and R&B music.

Kamaiyah first became known for her 2016 mixtape, A Good Night in the Ghetto. It was very popular with music critics. In 2017, the magazine XXL named her one of the top new rappers of the year in its 2017 Freshman Class. In 2020, she started her own record label called GRND.WRK.

Career

Early Success

Kamaiyah Johnson grew up in Oakland, California. As a kid, she loved 1990s music artists like TLC, Missy Elliott, and Aaliyah. Their style inspired her own music. Her first single, "How Does It Feel," came out in 2015. It was a big hit, and both Pitchfork and NPR called it one of the best songs of the year.

In March 2016, she released her first mixtape, A Good Night in the Ghetto. A mixtape is like an album that artists often release for free online. It received great reviews from many music experts.

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

Gaining Fame

After her mixtape came out, Kamaiyah performed at the famous South by Southwest music festival. Later that year, she was a featured artist on the song "Why You Always Hatin?" by the rapper YG. The famous rapper Drake was also on the song. Being a "featured" artist means she performed a verse on someone else's track.

She also joined YG as an opening act on his tour. An opening act is a musician who performs before the main artist. In 2016, Kamaiyah signed a contract with Interscope Records, a major record label.

On June 13, 2017, XXL magazine chose Kamaiyah for its "2017 Freshman Class." This is a special list of ten promising new artists in hip hop each year. She shared the honor with artists like A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Playboi Carti, and XXXTentacion.

Starting Her Own Label

Kamaiyah planned to release another mixtape called Don't Ever Get It Twisted, but it was delayed because of issues with her record label. Instead, she released a different mixtape on her own in 2017, called Before I Wake.

In 2018, Kamaiyah appeared in a TV commercial for the drink Sprite with basketball star LeBron James.

After more delays with her music, Kamaiyah decided to leave her record labels. She started her own label, GRND.WRK, in 2020. This allowed her to have full control over her music. Through her own label, she released her third mixtape, Got It Made, in 2020. Later that year, she released an EP called Oakland Nights with another artist from her area, Capolow.

In 2022, Kamaiyah was featured in a documentary called We Were Hyphy. The film was about the Hyphy music and dance style that started in California's Bay Area.

Discography

Here is a list of some of the music Kamaiyah has released.

EPs

An EP, or extended play, is a short collection of songs, longer than a single but shorter than a full album.

Mixtapes

Singles

A single is a song released on its own, often to promote an upcoming album.

As lead artist

As featured artist

Guest appearances