With his experimental blend of rage, trap and electronic beats — inspired by the SoundCloud rap ecosystem of acts like Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, Juice WRLD and more — slayr joins SoundCloud’s 2026 Ascending class.
SoundCloud’s Ascending is a monthly series that puts a spotlight on rising artists from around the globe who are breaking through. Previous Ascending artists include DIY alternative rock artists crayon and bunii, minimal house curator Josh Baker, indie-pop sensation Erin LeCount, alternative-R&B singer SAILORR and UK underground rapper YT, to name a few.
“I started producing at the same time I started rapping, when I was about 10 years old,” slayr remembers. “And SoundCloud was an easy place to upload.”
As young as he was when he started rapping and making beats in his bedroom, slayr was already locked into the SoundCloud rap ecosystem. Born in Philadelphia but raised on the internet, he heard rappers like Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti and Juice WRLD shake modern rap’s foundations with an intoxicating blend of trap, experimental electronics and filtered vocals that birthed sub-genres like rage. Inspired, slayr joined SoundCloud in 2018 and started posting his tracks, raw and direct. Within a year, he found himself steadily gaining traction on the platform.
“I had this song, ‘Kaya,’ that I made in the sixth grade,” slayr recalls. “It had a couple of thousand plays, but it got boosted by SoundCloud and it went to 50,000. It was crazy.”
On the recently released deluxe version of his latest full-length project, ‘Half Blood (BloodLuxe),’ slayr showcases his deft evolution of the rage style. He’s leaning into the melodic end of the spectrum, with influences ranging from video game music, digicore, pop punk, metal and EDM. Across the mixtape’s 20 high-energy tracks, slayr blends punchy distortion and fried trap beats with autotuned vocals, guitar riffs, 8-bit synths and collaborators like Lucy Bedroque, a lynchpin of the evolving digicore scene.
“Growing up, video game soundtracks and anime music videos shaped how I make my music, and got me into other rock sounds as well,” he says, of his layered sonics. “I’ve known music theory for a minute, too, because my mom made me play piano when I was 5 years old. She just kept me doing that, and made me who I am today.”
After uploading his releases directly to fans and growing his audience — “I garnered a little community at first, and then started building off of that” — slayr has broken through. In addition to experiencing steady growth in his artistry and career alike, this summer, he is set to open six dates on breakthrough rage rapper Yeat’s 2026 LOVE/LYFE tour.
After years of grinding and creating on SoundCloud, slayr, now 18, is more ready than ever to grasp the moment.
“It’s something I dreamed to do,” he says, reflecting on being named a SoundCloud Ascending artist. “I love SoundCloud, so being chosen is a full-circle moment for me.”
LISTEN TO “TOXIC” BY SLAYR ON SOUNDCLOUD NOW
CHECK OUT WHAT’S NEXT IN MUSIC WITH THE ASCENDING PLAYLIST ON SOUNDCLOUD
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