Cortisa Star: How Adventure Time inspired the rappers viral sound [Video]

“Trans artists run the field lowkey,” announced 19-year-old Delaware rapper Cortisa Star in a TikTok video earlier this year. I wouldn’t take those words lightly. Back in 2022, she posted a joke video calling herself an “underground rap princess” which inadvertently prompted an outpouring of support for her then-non-existent rap career. The experience inspired her to actually give music a stab and, two years later, she’s received cosigns from the likes of Doechii, Charli xcx, Skaiwater and more. That’s some serious manifestation skills.

It was Cortisa Star’s appearance on hood freestyle platform 4 Shooters Only last month, however, that really pushed her to global notoriety. With production taking cues from hyperpop and jerk, and tongue-in-cheek lyrics embracing her unlikely position as a trans rapper, the freestyle attracted a number of hate comments, but what these musical luddites miss is the profound rap revolution the young artist has found herself at the centre of.

Bass-boosted to the point of …