KANII

Born in 2005, Kanii began issuing original material by his mid-teens after growing up in Washington, D.C. His initial tracks helped shape a singular approach that fused kinetic electronic backdrops with insistent vocal melodies straddling agitated R&B and the pop-rap lineage that followed Drake. The first clear snapshot of that cyberpop-rap hybrid arrived with the 2022 two-track EP Kaizen. Over the ensuing months he issued three additional projects at a steady clip—Kosia, ReliEVE, and Lucent—each folding in traces of ambient electronics, hyperpop, and the rap scenes flourishing online. The 2022 single “attachment (she wanna love)” accumulated multimillion streaming totals, yet it was the March 2023 release “I Know” that accelerated his profile after it caught fire on TikTok and subsequently entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 90 while also registering on international charts. Multiple remixes sustained its reach, prompting two further 2023 cuts, “Go (Xtayalive 2)” and “Heart Racing.” After inking a deal with Warner Records, Kanii delivered the EPs Exiit and It Was Nice Knowing U; in 2024 he rejoined Riovaz and Nimstarr—the same collaborators featured on “Heart Racing”—for the single “Tell Me.”