Every year, XXL unveils its highly coveted Freshman Class. On Monday (June 24), the publication shared the anticipated lineup for 2024, and it didn’t disappoint. The 11 spots went to Lay Bankz, Maiya The Don, BigXthaPlug, That Mexican OT, BossMan Dlow, Rich Amiri, ScarLip, Hunxho, Cash Cobain, Skilla Baby and 4batz.
Inevitably, each announcement brings a swarm of haters who reminisce about the older generation of rap stars. “Respectfully, this [is] not it… Congrats to everyone who made it, though,” wrote one social media user underneath XXL’s post. Another argued, “The ‘Not Like Us” title with no one from the West Coast is insane.”
Then, there were fans disappointed their favorite artists didn’t make the final cut. One person argued, “Anycia should [have] been on the cover,” while a separate account questioned, “No Sexyy Red? No BabyDrill? Y’all are [tripping] hard.”
Lay Bankz rose to fame with tracks like “Na Na Na” and “Ick,” with 2024’s “Tell Ur Girlfriend” marking her Hot 100 debut. Meanwhile, Maiya The Don saw success via “Telfy” — paying homage to the now-iconic Telfar bag — and released her debut album, Hot Commodity, in 2023.
The guys have seen their careers skyrocket, too. BossMan Dlow’s “Get In With Me” took over TikTok, and his viral cut “Finesse” got a remix from GloRilla. On the other hand, Skilla Baby debuted The Coldest in April.
In a sit-down with Rap-Up, the Detroit native spoke about the project. He said, “I wanted this project to be well-rounded and diverse, and to show my range. I’m very excited for people to see that I can really rap.”
2023’s XXL list included quite a few heavy hitters: Finesse2tymes, Lola Brooke, Rob49, Fridayy, GloRilla, 2Rare, SleazyWorld Go, Central Cee, Real Boston Richey, Luh Tyler, TiaCorine and DC The Don.