Latto Gets Lucky On Her New Album ‘777’
Atlanta-bred rapper Latto has risen through the ranks in recent years and held her own in a crowded field of young new female rappers. After bursting onto the scene in 2020 with her album Queen of da Souf, Latto has shown that she can rap over many kinds of beats with ease.
In March 2022, Latto released her highly-anticipated sophomore album 777. The album is a reintroduction to the rapper as well as her abilities, and further proof of undeniable rap talent.
Latto’s 777 album is her first under her new name
Latto first rose to fame in the late 2010s under the name Mulatto. In 2021, the rapper announced that she would no longer be going by the moniker, instead opting to use the name Latto.
777 is Latto’s first release under her new name. In an interview with Complex ahead of the album’s release, she admitted that she wanted herself to be the main attraction in part because it was in many ways a sort of debut.
“I definitely didn’t want to swamp it with features,” she said. “I wanted to still be the focus, because it is me reintroducing myself to the world. This is my first project with my new name, so I definitely wanted to solidify myself and where I fit in the industry.”
Among the album’s special guests are Lil Wayne, Childish Gambino, 21 Savage, and Kodak Black.
Latto had trouble clearing a feature on the album
In the lead-up to the album’s release, Latto spoke openly about struggling to clear a certain feature on the album. She left the rapper unnamed, but alleged that he didn’t respond to her DMs about clearing his verse because she wouldn’t have sex with him.
“Being a female rapper, I’m clearing my album right now,” she said about the process in an interview with Los Angeles’ Power 92.3. “It’s been difficult to deal with these men. They don’t know how to keep it business.”
“I’ma just keep it 100,” she continued. “It’s a feature on my album. It was difficult to clear and they tryna drop they nuts on me because I won’t respond to a DM.” Ultimately, she had to hand in the album as-is.
Latto showed versatility on ‘777’
Since the release of 777‘s lead single “Big Energy,” Latto showed that she was going to deliver the unexpected on her album. Rather than opt for a tracklist consisting entirely of heavy hip-hop beats, Latto brought her rap abilities to several different production styles — and tackles each one more swiftly than the last.
She told Complex that the versatility was intentional, with the project containing a wide array of songs. “‘Big Energy’ is the pop sound from this project,” she said. “I got an R&B sound. I got the rap trap sound. I got some rhythmic stuff that I did with Pharrell, just different swaggy stuff. ‘Sunshine’ has a more artistic feel. So it’s really just a plethora of things.”
Latto released a ‘Big Energy’ remix with Mariah Carey
After the album’s release, Latto teased another special collaboration tied to the project: a new remix of “Big Energy” with none other than Mariah Carey. Given that the song samples Tom Tom Club’s 1981 single “Genius of Love” — the same song that Carey’s history-making No. 1 hit single “Fantasy” sampled — a collaboration between the two was a no-brainer. The original “Big Energy” became Latto’s highest-charting single to date, peaking at No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
“I originally thought Mariah for the remix back in like November when [‘Big Energy’] first started going up but didn’t think I could get her realistically,” Latto confessed in a tweet. “Fast forward, I said ‘F*** it’ and reached out. She was down.” She added that they were even chatting while drinking Carey’s brand of Irish cream, Black Irish.
“I knew [the song] was commercial but didn’t think it would change my life, man!!!!” she continued. “I talked to Mariah over the phone until we both fell in love with the song. Every time her name popped up on my phone I screamed.”
