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Every artist reaches an audience. Lancey Foux appeals to a cult. He engenders a staggering level of fanaticism from listeners who pour over the meaning of his lyrics and gleefully cop his trendsetting looks. A devout cohort of fans—whose acolytes include Kanye West and Playboi Carti—continues to pledge its allegiance to him, amplifying his myth throughout the culture in the process. Not only meeting, but exceeding a demand for artistic integrity, the UK rapper, creator, and style icon expands this growing legend on his 2021 mixtape LIVE.EVIL and much more to come. “I can’t be sitting around twisting my fingers,” he exclaims. “I have a cult base, and I have to feed them. So, I’m always making music. If you listen to it long enough to understand the lyrics, the flows, and the intricacies, you can understand what I’m about. That’s not easy on a casual basis. I strive to create something great for them though. Everything needs to be super quality. The fans keep me going.” His story begins in Plaistow, East London. Hailing from Uganda, mom and dad spoke Acholi and English in the house. Lancey’s father stood out as a businessman and a DJ, introducing him to music from Uganda and Congo. During school, he flourished in English, drama, and “anything that had to do with the arts.” Studying old school records inspired him “to be more of a listener when others spoke.” As much as he paid attention to those around him, he also listened to everyone from Blade Brown and Skepta to Future, Lil Wayne, and Young Thug.
Once he picked up a mic, he unleashed a deluge of music, including Pink, First Day At Nursery, and Pink II. In 2019, he broke into the global conversation with FRIEND OR FOUX highlighted by “INDIA,” “DREAM,” and “GHETTO YOUT.” The momentum increased on FIRST DEGREE, which he laced with bangers such as “WHAT U WANT” [feat. Skepta] and “Don’t TALK.” Attracting critical applause, Study Breaks hailed him as “an Unexpected Rockstar in the Making,” and PAPER declared, “There Are No Limits to Lancey Foux.” Kanye invited him into the headline-making rollout of Donda as Carti and more expressed support online. Simultaneously, he appeared as a model for Givenchy, Alexander McQueen, Mulberry, MISBHV, Jordan, and Trapstar, to name a few. During 2021, he spent May through September in the States, visiting Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta and Las Vegas, recording at a prolific pace, and assembling what would become LIVE.EVIL. “When I was in America, I felt like I was living dark,” he admits. “I was away from home in a different position. To me, ‘LIVE’ is good. You’re living and breathing. But, backwards, ‘LIVE’ spells ‘EVIL’ . All of the good you are doing might be bad. Or, your good isn’t going anywhere, so you do bad to see where it goes. I took both good and bad and put them into the journey.” The journey takes off on the single “OUTTAMYMIND!” [feat. Lil Yachty]. The track’s glitchy beat drips with spacey flourishes. Over this backdrop, his incendiary verses burn off into a cerebrally catchy chorus punctuated by Yachty’s instantly recognizable croon. “Yachty is genuine about the music and being a good friend,” says Lancey. “We did part of the song in Los Angeles and the second half in New York, while Yachty did his verse in London. Lyrically, I was worrying about things, but I was still turned up at the same time. You could say I was ‘OUTTAMYMIND.’The title fit.” A furious and fiery flow illuminates his technical prowess on “Respect” before another hard-hitting hook.
Then, there’s “Wait In Miami” where he envisions “going to a place that’s temporary paradise, meeting a girl, and having a great time—but you can’t overstay your welcome.” On the other end of the spectrum, melodic warbling cuts deep on “Over Me” where glassy harmonies echo above airy production. “My grandma had passed away around the time when I was with Kanye,” he sighs. “It stayed in my head. My grandma was really like God—similar to how my mom is like God. All of the females in my life are like God, because I came from a woman.” In the end, Lancey connects because of unapologetic honesty and a commitment to being no one else but Lancey. “When you hear me, I want you take away emotion,” he leaves off. “If you listen to my songs and genuinely feel happy, I’m happy. If you want to do good or improve on something, I can help you with that. If it makes you want to get some anger out, that’s what it is. It’s all emotion.”
