Sada Baby

Lyricism and musicality matter, but star power is undeniable—and one glimpse of Sada Baby's magnetic presence proves he's special. Growing up in Detroit, Sada Baby (born Casada Sorrell in 1992) developed a diverse music palate for street rap, Southern crunk and rock music. As a kid, he sang in a church choir but turned to hip-hop in his early 20s after winning a local competition inspired him to take his career from playful freestyling to full-time. In his most extraordinary form, Sada Baby lays elastic, scratchy snarls over pounding pianos and stuttering drums, and often spits unsparing threats with bristling machismo while mixing in obscure animé references and outrageous jokes. In short, Sada is unafraid to let his animated side loose—spotlighted on his 2017 mixtape Skuba Sada and his star-turning 2018 hit with Drego, "Bloxk Party", where he spews hilarious, hedonistic rhymes (and shows off comical dances in the video). A brief deal with fellow Motor City rapper Tee Grizzley's Grizzley Gang imprint slowed down his musical releases. But it wasn't long before Sada Baby went indie again and released 2019's Bartier Bounty, resuming his frenetic output in 2020 with a barrage of music videos and projects. Perhaps most notably, he brought his off-kilter flow to Big Sean's "Friday Night Cypher" alongside nearly a dozen lyricists from Detroit like Eminem, Royce da 5'9 and Kash Doll. Everyone on the song has their lane, but with his unbridled energy and superstar persona, Sada Baby has his own highway.