Tierra Whack is a creative genius.

The first time I experienced the magic that is Tierra Whack’s creativity, I was sitting in the living room of my apartment watching her visual album for Whack World, her first studio record. As the video transitioned from “Dr. Seuss” to “Waze”, I distinctly remember my jaw-dropping and getting chills as I glanced over to my roommate Emma in awe. From that moment on, I was encapsulated by this artist. Tierra Whack’s limitless ability to imagine is driven by her intrinsic motivation to “make art for art’s sake,” her use of collecting and collaboration to help carry out her vision.

Tierra Whack, 24, grew up in Philadelphia and was a fan of Dr. Seuss from a young age. She rhymed her homework to mimic Dr. Seuss, and as she grew up, she didn’t lose that hobby, but it grew into writing poetry and experimenting with freestyle rap. The first video of her freestyle rapping was released in March 2011 by “We Run the Streets,” a local Philly YouTube channel that showcases up and coming music artists. She was just 15 and after this she was under the management of the founder of “We Run the Streets.”

Whack would perform anywhere she was asked and quickly gained local fame as she built relationships with Philly rappers like Meek Mill. Unfortunately, she felt as though her freestyling wasn’t furthering her career, and she fell into a depression. Her mother moved the family to Atlanta which, according to Whack, re-invigorated her creativity. In Atlanta, Whack worked at a car wash allowing her to save up to purchase a MacBook. From here she began recording her own music and ultimately signed to Interscope records at some point in 2017 (she has yet to speak about how and when this deal was made).

Whack’s process is heavily influenced by idols she discovered at a young age. She was inspired by Missy Elliot, someone she identified with both descriptively — both women are dark-skinned rappers that have faced backlash because of their complexion and gender — and artistically. The young Philly rapper imposes absolutely no restrictions on what she is able to create, similar to Elliot. She is a prime example of divergent thinking’s power. In Whack’s song “Mumbo Jumbo,” she rapped with gauze in her mouth after getting dental work done to nail down the pacing for the track. Whack decided to leave her rap the way it was, mumbled and unclear, and not rerecord because she liked the sound — a decision that would not have been made by any other artist in the game because of the pressure to fit in with what is popular, but Whack had no hesitation and gained a Grammy nomination for the accompanying music video.

The 24-year-old’s motivation stands out from her colleagues. She has been quoted on several occasions citing that “[she] started music to be [her]self — to release and express — so [she has] to make sure that [she’s] staying true to [herself] and making [her]self happy.” Some of Whack’s motivation must be extrinsic, as music has become her fulltime job, but she consistently mentions that she makes music because it is truly what she loves to do. This intrinsic motivation adds an authenticity to her work that other artists lack. Her motivation also leads to greater creative freedom in her work. For example, her first studio album, Whack World, is made up of 15 one-minute songs, something that up to this point is unseen. This creativity oozes into her visuals for the album. She plays 15 different characters — complete with different styling, accents, and moods — throughout the 16-minute video. Her anthology type video allows her to show multiple different sides to her music, her personality and her talent; something that may have not been possible if she limited her creativity to cater to public desire or normativity.

Collecting has also played a large part in Whack’s creative process. As a child, she was bullied for her dark skin and “weird” behavior. This refection from her peers (similar to rejection from the domain), pushed her to begin writing down her feelings to express herself. She then began collecting memories and feelings from childhood that would influence and inform her music today. NPR reporter Rodney Carmichael said, “all these seemingly disparate characters add up to a portrait of Whack's psychological coming of age,” commenting on how collecting has helped develop her music.  For example, when Whack was working at the car wash in Atlanta she collected a work ethic that is clearly communicated through her work. Drying cars after they had been washed, became a “wash, rinse, repeat” routine, is the same way she created Whack World. The songs began with a beat and the lyrics fell into place. Wash, rinse, repeat.

The final thing I’ll discuss in relation to Whack is her collaboration (believe me, I could dig much deeper into her process because she is an absolute creative genius). Whack began collaborating with a longtime friend Kenete Simms, a sound engineer and music producer, to carry out her visions. In an interview with Fader reporter Rawiya Kameir, Whack said “I just blurt out ideas all day long and he’ll take note of everything and eventually he’s like, ‘Whack, you can do this now. We can do this,” commenting on Kenete’s involvement in her music. He pushes her to realize her visions and provides her with the tools to do so. Whack’s use of collaboration provides someone who records her ideas and ensures the manifestation of her concepts allowing her to fully break the rules for what music should look and sound like.

                              

In conclusion, Whack’s music and visuals have gained traction in the industry because of her intrinsic motivation to create, her collection of memories and feelings, and her use of collaboration to realize her visions. Her natural ability to spit bars is nothing to ignore. It drives her creative process. Watch her XXL Freshman Cypher performance and you’ll quickly realize she stands far out from her opponents — frankly, her male competition can’t hold a candle to her.

If you’d like to jump into some of her content, I’d suggest first watching the visual album for Whack World. It provides an overall look at her limitless ability to imagine and create. And who knows, it might make you a fan just like it did for me.