Alyssa Michelle Stephens (born December 22, 1998), known professionally as Latto (formerly known as Mulatto), is an American rapper and singer from Atlanta, Georgia. She first appeared on Jermaine Dupri's reality television series The Rap Game in 2016, where she was known as Miss Mulatto and won the show's first season, but rejected the award of a recording contract with Dupri's So So Def Recordings.
Following a name change to Latto, she reached wider mainstream recognition after the release of her 2021 single, "Big Energy." The song peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, received a triple platinum certification, and landed at number seven on the Year-End Hot 100 chart; its live performance received a Grammy Award nomination. "Big Energy" served as lead single for her second studio album 777 (2022), which trailed commercially at number 15 on the Billboard 200. Her guest appearance on Jungkook's 2023 single "Seven" became her first song to peak atop both the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Global 200, while her single "Put It on da Floor Again" (remixed featuring Cardi B) peaked at number 13 on the former chart that same year. The latter served as lead single for her third studio album, Sugar Honey Iced Tea (2024), which matched her previous on the Billboard 200.
Alyssa Michelle Stephens was born in Columbus, Ohio, on December 22, 1998,[1] to Misti Pitts and Shayne Stephens. She attended Lovejoy High School in Clayton County, Georgia. She credits Clayton County as the place that gave her street credibility. Her mother is white and her biological father is African American.[3] Stephens was bullied in school for being "light-skinned" which inspired her to later adopt the stage name Miss Mulatto when she began her rapping career, after the "mulatto" racial classification.[4] At the age of ten, Stephens decided to become a rapper and began writing her own rap songs.[5][6] Prior to doing music, she participated in drag racing.[7]
Career
2016–2018: Career beginnings and The Rap Game
Latto in a 2018 interview
In 2016, Stephens became a contestant on the Lifetime reality series The Rap Game, produced by Jermaine Dupri and Queen Latifah. The boot camp-style series followed young aspiring rappers in a competition against one another over a span of eight weeks. Latto, under the stage name "Miss Mulatto" at the time, was the overall winner of the competition. She was offered a recording contract from Dupri with So So Def Records but ultimately turned down the deal claiming it was not enough money, opting to be an independent artist.[8]
Stephens' second mixtape, Latto Let 'Em Know, was released in April 2017. The tape featured artists like Molly Brazy, Lil Key, Crucial, and Silentó. The single "Response Diss" is a diss song directed toward Young Lyric, a fellow competitor from The Rap Game. The ongoing feud between the two resulted in diss tracks from both parties with insults about drug use, homosexuality, and past experiences from the show.[9]
2019–2020: Breakthrough and Queen of Da Souf
In January 2019, Latto released the song "Bitch from da Souf". In May 2019, she was invited to perform at the Rolling Loud, an annual hip hop festival, located in Miami, Florida.[10] In June 2019, she released her second extended play, titled Big Latto, which was preceded by "Bitch from da Souf".[11] The single became her breakout hit, peaking at number 95 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the United States. The song later received a remix, featuring rappers Saweetie and Trina, which was later included on Mulatto's third EP, Hit the Latto, which was released on December 12.[12]
In March 2020, it was officially announced that Latto had signed with RCA Records.[13] On April 23, Latto released the promotional single, "No Hook". On May 21, she released the second promotional single, "He Say She Say". In July 2020, Latto recreated some of rapper Gucci Mane's album covers, starting with 2009'sThe State vs. Radric Davis, to which Gucci reacted positively. Latto then revealed the release of her single "Muwop", featuring Gucci Mane, which was released on July 30.[14] The song samples Gucci's 2007's single, "Freaky Gurl". Latto made a cameo appearance in American rapper Cardi B's music video for her single "WAP", which was released on August 7, 2020.[15] On the same day, Latto was featured on NLE Choppa's single "Make Em Say", taken from his debut studio album, Top Shotta. On August 11, Latto was included on XXL's 2020 Freshman Class.[16][17]
On August 12, Latto announced the release of her debut project through RCA, titled Queen of da Souf; it was released on August 21, 2020. The project was preceded by two singles, which were the remix to "Bitch from da Souf" and "Muwop" featuring Gucci Mane; as well as the promotional singles "No Hook" and "He Say She Say". The album peaked at number 44 on the US Billboard 200.
On September 4, Latto was featured on the remix of the Chloe x Halle song "Do It", alongside Doja Cat and City Girls. The same day, Latto was also featured on G-Eazy's single, "Down". Music videos for the third and fourth singles from Queen of da Souf, "On God" and "In n Out" featuring City Girls, were released in September and October 2020, respectively. On September 29, it was announced that she had been nominated for Best New Hip Hop Artist at the 2020 BET Hip Hop Awards, where she was also a performer.[18][19] On December 11, Latto released the extended version of Queen of da Souf, which included five new songs and spawned the single "Sex Lies", featuring American rapper Lil Baby.[20]
2021–present: Name change, 777 and Sugar Honey Iced Tea
Latto performing in November 2021
In January 2021, it was announced that Latto would be changing her stage name from "Mulatto" following the controversy of the term being deemed as colorist.[21]
In February 2021, it was announced that Latto would be named MTV's Global Push Artist of the month.[22] In March 2021, she became the first female rapper from Atlanta to have a solo record be certified gold and platinum with "Bitch from da Souf" (2019) and "Muwop" (2020).[23][24]
In May 2021, she confirmed in various interviews that she had officially settled on a new stage name, following scrutiny for the racially charged nature of her name. On May 18, it was reported that on streaming platforms, Mulatto's name had been changed to simply Latto, a change first reflected on her guest appearance on Toosii's album Thank You for Believing, where she was credited as Latto. She released a new single titled "The Biggest", to go with the announcement of her new name.[25]
On September 24 of that same year, Latto released the lead single from her then-upcoming second studio album, "Big Energy".[26] The song became Latto's highest charting song on the Billboard Hot 100 peaking at number three. American singer Mariah Carey appeared on the official remix, which was released in March 2022. A followup single, "Soufside", was released on November 5.[27]
On March 9, 2022, Latto announced that the song "Wheelie" would be released on March 11, and confirmed it would feature fellow Atlanta rapper 21 Savage.[28] All three songs were included on Latto's second studio album, 777, which was released on March 25. On July 15, she released the song "Pussy".[29] Latto was featured on Chloe Bailey's single "For the Night".[30]
In February 2023, Latto was nominated for Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards.[31] She released the single "Lottery" on February 17.[32] In July, Latto appeared as a featured artist on South Korean singer Jungkook's debut solo single "Seven".[33] It debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming her first song to reach the top spot of that chart.[34] She was included in Forbes 30 Under 30 list for 2024 music.[35] On Oct. 12, 2023, Latto released "Did Somebody Say HipOpera," a Rap opera collaboration with singer Christina Aguilera.[36]
In January 2024, Latto was featured on the remix version of Jennifer Lopez' song "Can't Get Enough", the first single out of Lopez' upcoming album This Is Me...Now. On February 5, 2024, Latto announced her single "Sunday Service" via social media. The cover artwork depicts a collage of prominent women rappers printed on a cyclorama back.[37] The eyes of Latto and all the featured rappers are concealed by a black box or horizontal black bar.[38]
In 2021, Latto founded the Win Some Give Some Foundation to “empower at-risk young women by providing them resources and support to achieve a lifetime of success.”[40]
Personal life
In May 2019, Latto was arrested for theft when she was mistaken for another woman. She released a track, "Fuck Rice Street", attesting to her innocence and frustration toward the police.[41][42]
In July 2024, footage of an officer confronting Latto for running a red light was uploading onto YouTube via bodycam, which was originally captured on September 28, 2023. The rapper underwent a breathalyzer test as a result and explained that she committed the crime due to concerns about being chased by her fans.[43]
^Seabrook III, Robby (August 7, 2019). "The Break Presents: Mulatto". XXL Mag. Archived from the original on March 31, 2022. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
^Kang, Da-yoon (January 7, 2024). '4관왕' 세븐틴·'2관왕' 뉴진스, 나란히 대상 쾌거 "거창한 상에 당당할 수 있도록" [38회 골든디스크](종합) ['Four-time winners' Seventeen and Two-time winners' NewJeans wins the grand prize "To be able to win a huge prize" [38th Golden Disc] (Comprehensive)] (in Korean). My Daily. Retrieved January 7, 2024 – via Naver.
^Lee, Ha-na (December 2, 2023). BTS 정국, 베스트 솔로→밀리언스 TOP10 4관왕‥빛나는 존재감[MMA2023] [BTS Jungkook, Best Solo → Millions TOP 10 4 wins...Shining presence [MMA2023]]. Newsen (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 2, 2023. Retrieved December 2, 2023 – via Naver.
