Steven Malcolm

Blending faith-driven lyrics with sleek commercial rap production, Steven Malcolm infuses reggae accents throughout his work to honor his Jamaican heritage. His recording path began with an early mixtape and independent album that secured a contract via Word Entertainment, paving the way for the Dove-nominated Steven Malcolm in 2017 and The Second City in 2019. A 2020 team-up with dancehall superstar Shaggy brought his reggae leanings into sharper focus, while vaporous trap backdrops and supple flows marked singles such as 2022’s “Respect” and the 2024 long-player Boats.

Hailing from Grand Rapids, Michigan, Steven Malcolm first entered a church during his freshman year of college at a friend’s urging, amid personal family struggles and waning concentration. A spirited service that fused hip-hop and dance moved him to attend regularly, prompting him to exit his prior rap collective and channel his energy into spiritually centered rhymes. He later joined the church worship team and began crafting his debut project. Momentum built with the 2013 mixtape Real Hip Hop, followed by the self-released full-length Monsters Ink a year later. Regional notice grew through rap contests and stage shows that balanced introspection with sociopolitical commentary, earning him a spot on Rapzilla’s Freshmen of 2016 list and marking him as an emerging talent.

Once signed to Word Entertainment as the inaugural act on its new hip-hop imprint 4 Against 5, Malcolm reached streaming charts in early 2017 with the pop-rap cut “Party in the Hills,” featuring Andy Mineo and Hollyn. His label debut Steven Malcolm appeared that February and charted on Billboard’s Top Christian Albums tally. He took the stage at that year’s GMA Dove Awards, receiving three nominations: Rap/Hip-Hop Album of the Year, Rap/Hip Hop Recorded Song of the Year for “Party in the Hills,” and New Artist of the Year. In the interim between projects he contributed verses to more than a dozen recordings, among them Torey D’Shaun’s “Boomerang [Remix]” and Evan and Eris’ “Be Alright.” The Second City, his follow-up for 4 Against 5, landed in January 2019. In 2020 he joined Shaggy on a remix of the Second City track “Fuego,” which later spawned additional versions.

Throughout 2021 Malcolm dropped consistent singles, including the Childish Major-assisted “Glory on Me,” and gathered several cuts onto the All Is True EP. The year 2022 brought “Respect,” “Accelerate” with Canon, “Ain’t Playin’” with Social Club Misfits, and further tracks that formed the star-studded mixtape Tree. Following 2023 singles such as “40” and “Cardio,” he unveiled his subsequent studio album Boats in February 2024. The set traversed styles from post-Drake pop-rap to dancehall-inflected cuts and nimble trap workouts. That same year Malcolm linked with Christian alt-rock group Sanctus Real on the single “Feels to Be Free.”