Dominating the Gen Z music scene for the past year and a half has been an unexpected subgenre of hip-hop, in large part due to the booming of one eccentric artist with a die-hard fanbase. Portland rapper Noah Smith, better known as Yeat, seems to have more than just TikTok singing along to his sometimes-unintelligible lyrics, and his rise to stardom is a testament to the direction of music – as well as media as a whole.

On Spotify alone, Yeat averages over 10 million monthly listeners, already with six signature projects to his name. Three of his tracks have reached the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S., and on TikTok, his big money-maker, his “Yeat” stage name is responsible for over 10.4 billion total views across the platform.

For some, the appeal to his music is difficult to understand. But that is exactly what has got him here.

It all began with a ding. In late 2021, a snippet from Yeat’s “Gët Busy” was plastered all over the For You pages of teenagers across the country. His proclamation was simple: “this song already was turnt, but here’s a bell” followed by an iconic bell sound effect that would echo the beat in the ever-satisfying gap-filler of an instrumental.

With no shortage of Tonka truck references and ünnecëssäry diacritics, Yeat trudged a path of fan service and steady growth.

“What got me into Yeat’s music was easily how unique he is,” senior Blake Johnson said. “The rap scene was dry for a long time and what was needed was a new wave. Yeat’s music is so unique that you could study to it or work out to it, it covers all moods basically.”

Today, once the clock struck midnight, Yeat’s 22-song “AftërLyfe” album went live, and it is sure to have the music scene talking as he prepares to make his second nation-wide tour. “Split”, the 14th track, is currently the talk of the town across social media, the voice-crack flow he employs being just another one of his extensive spectrum of unique sounds. 

Not to mention, “I want Bentley, I want money” is as profound of a sentiment I have personally heard on the hook of a rap song. How long could it have taken to come up with?

For Chargers and “twizzies” alike, his Houston appearance is set for March 23rd at 713 Music Hall downtown. All of his self-made beats and vocals continue to reach their audience to a higher and higher degree with each release, and we now stand in the middle of Yeat’s reign on rap music. All we can do now is kick back, adjust our turbans, and enjoy the show.