Bas

About

Also known as: Abbas Hamad

Signed to J. Cole's Dreamville Records, Bas has quietly built one of the more interesting catalogs in modern hip hop. Born in Paris to Sudanese parents and raised in Queens, New York, he brings a genuinely global perspective to trap inflected rap that sets him apart from most of his peers. His first three albums, Last Winter, Too High to Riot, and Milky Way, all charted on the Billboard 200, with each one outselling the last. J. Cole shows up as a frequent collaborator, but Bas fills his records with a wide cast including ASAP Ferg, Ari Lennox, EarthGang, and JID. His fourth album, We Only Talk About Real Shit When We're Fucked Up, dropped in late 2023 and kept the good run going, featuring a sprawling guest list that includes AJ Tracey, Amaarae, FKJ, and Adekunle Gold. The record leans into his internationalist instincts, with singles named after Khartoum and Ho Chi Minh sitting comfortably alongside New York corner store energy on tracks like 179 Deli. Most recently, the 2024 video for Light Of My Soul suggests he has no intention of slowing down.