Cupcakke

Elizabeth Eden Harris (born May 31, 1997), known professionally as Cupcakke (often stylized as cupcakKe), is an American rapper, singer and songwriter from Chicago, Illinois. Cupcakke began her career as a rapper by releasing material online in late 2012. In 2015, two of her songs, "Deepthroat" and "Vagina", went viral on video-sharing websites such as YouTube and WorldStarHipHop.[3] The songs were later included on her debut mixtape, Cum Cake (2016), which was placed at number 23 on Rolling Stone's "Best Rap Albums of 2016" list.[4][5]

Not to be confused with Cupcake.

Cupcakke
CupcakKe in 2018
Background information
Birth name	Elizabeth Eden Harris[1]
Born	(1997-05-31) May 31, 1997 Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Genres	Dirty rap[1] hip hop[2] alternative rap[1]
Occupation(s)	Rapper singer songwriter
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	2012–present
Associated acts	Charli XCX Brooke Candy Pabllo Vittar

Her second mixtape, S.T.D (Shelters to Deltas), was released in 2016. She has also received attention from music publications Complex[6] and The Fader.[7] Cupcakke has released the studio albums Audacious (2016), Queen Elizabitch (2017), Ephorize and Eden (both in 2018).

Cupcakke is often noted for her hyper-sexualized, brazen, and often comical persona and music.[8][3] Cupcakke has also used her songs as a platform to advocate for LGBT rights and encourage female empowerment.[9]

Early life

Harris was born on May 31, 1997,[10] in Chicago, Illinois, and was raised on King Drive, near Parkway Gardens. Harris was raised by a single mother and spent nearly four years in Chicago's homeless shelters starting at age seven.[11] She grew up and went to school with other established Chicago rappers such as Lil Reese and Chief Keef. She got an early start into music and poetry at the age of 10 by her involvement in her local church. It was also there that she got her start in performing, where she would perform for her local pastors by reciting poetry about her Christianity and faith.[12]

When she was 13, she met a fellow church-goer who encouraged her to turn the poetry into rap music, and she became infatuated with the art form. She cites 50 Cent, Lil' Kim, and Da Brat as early influences to her musical style.[13][12]

Career

2012–2014: Early output

Harris released her first music video, "Gold Digger" onto her official YouTube channel in August 2012. She was only 15 at the time of its release—the original video has since been deleted.[3] Over the next few years, she continued to release original music, as well as freestyles using beats from other artists through her YouTube channel, where she has amassed over 500,000 subscribers.[14]

2015–2016: Cum Cake, S.T.D (Shelters to Deltas), and Audacious

In October 2015, the official music video for her song "Vagina" was released on YouTube via YMCFilmz. According to Cupcakke, she wrote the song because she was inspired by Khia's song "My Neck, My Back".[15] One month later, Harris released "Deepthroat" on her own channel. Within weeks, the two videos went viral on YouTube, Worldstar, and Facebook due to their overt sexual nature and raunchiness. The songs later became singles for Harris' debut mixtape, Cum Cake, which was released in February 2016. Its release was also supported by further singles such as "Juicy Coochie", "Tit for Tat", and "Pedophile". A writer for Pitchfork called the mixtape a "well rounded introduction to a skilled writer" and said it used songs "about love, loss, and hardship with its more explicit tracks to create a full profile of the up-and-coming Chicago rapper".[5] "Pedophile" was also specifically noted for its powerful lyrics and blunt commentary on sexual assault.[3]

In June 2016, Harris released her second mixtape, S.T.D (Shelters to Deltas) It was preceded by the single "Best Dick Sucker". Other tracks, such as "Doggy Style" and "Motherlands", were also later released as singles. The mixtape was listed among Rolling Stone's "Best Rap Albums of 2016 So Far".[4]

In October 2016, Harris released her debut studio album, Audacious.[16] The album was preceded by the single "Picking Cotton", which was described by MTV News as "a protest song about racist cops".[12] Other tracks on the album such as "Spider-Man Dick" and "LGBT" were accompanied by music videos. In an interview Harris stated that she made the song "LGBT" "...strictly for the gay community to know that they are loved and don’t need to feel judged." [17]

2017–2018: Queen Elizabitch, Ephorize and Eden

In February 2017, Harris released "Cumshot", which served as the lead single to her second studio album. On March 7, English singer-songwriter Charli XCX premiered her song "Lipgloss", which featured Harris. The song was later included on XCX's mixtape, Number 1 Angel, which was released on March 10.[18]

Her second studio album, titled Queen Elizabitch, was released on March 31, 2017.[19] The Fader described it as "the type of nasty rap that made her a viral sensation, alongside all-out pop bangers like "33rd" and the confessional a cappella freestyle "Reality, Pt. 4."[20] Stereogum also noted that the album "sees CupcakKe engaging with the current political climate and radio trends in a way that could help her cross over to a more mainstream audience".[21][22]

On April 7, 2017, Queen Elizabitch was removed from online streaming services and digital music stores due to an illegal backing track that Harris had purchased from what she described as a "shady producer". She soon announced on Twitter that Queen Elizabitch would be re-released on April 16, 2017.[23] She then released the singles "Exit" on November 6, 2017, and "Cartoons" on November 10, 2017.[24][25]

Her third studio album, Ephorize, was released on January 5, 2018.[26] Exclaim! called it "her most polished work to date" and noted that "she still slides in plenty of deliciously dirty one-liners throughout the new record."[27] HotNewHipHop commented that "Ephorize might be one of the most introspective bodies of work she's dropped off to date."[28] Pitchfork called it Cupcakke's "best album yet, with terrific production and a barrage of raps that reveal Elizabeth Harris to be far more than her hilarious and absurdly raunchy one-liners."[29]

On January 15, 2018, Harris posted the music video for her song "Duck Duck Goose", from Ephorize, on YouTube. The Fader described it saying "the visual features the Chicago rapper showing off an extensive collection of dildos as well as a souvenir Statue of Liberty. "[30] On February 20, the music video for "Fullest", another track from Ephorize, was released.[31]

On November 9, 2018, Harris released her fourth studio album, Eden. She released music videos for the lead single "Quiz", and for the following singles "Hot Pockets" and "Blackjack".

2019–present: Hiatus and standalone singles

Cupcakke at Primavera Sound in 2019

On January 8, 2019, Harris was reportedly taken to a hospital in Chicago after tweeting that she was going to commit suicide.[32] In a tweet posted the next day, Harris wrote "I've been fighting with depression for the longest. Sorry that I did it public last night but I'm ok. I went to the hospital & I'm finally getting the help that I need to get through, be happy, & deliver great music. Thanks for all the prayers but please don't worry bout me."[33]

On January 11, 2019, the single Squidward Nose was released,[34] and on February 21, 2019, a music video for the song featuring John Early premiered.[35] On April 17, 2019, Harris released a remix of Lil Nas X's song "Old Town Road" titled "Old Town Hoe". It was released exclusively on her YouTube channel.[36] A music video was released the following day.[37]

In September 2019, Harris announced her retirement in an Instagram live video, stating, "This live is going to be the last video that y'all [will] see of me".[38] She stated that she would no longer be releasing music to the public and that she would be removing her music from all streaming platforms.[39] She stated that she was disturbed to see children in videos and young people at her shows singing along to her explicit songs, felt she was "corrupting the youth" with her raunchy songs.[38][40] and said "I want to go to heaven after this. I don’t want to go to hell”.[41] Harris also told fans that she has a "very bad gambling addiction" and that she had lost $700,000 at a casino in September 2018.[41] She concluded the video by thanking her fans for their support and for saving her and her family from homelessness which they experienced prior to Harris' career in music.[42]

Harris' Instagram and Twitter accounts were deactivated after the livestream ended.[41] Her music remained available on streaming platforms.[42]

On November 7, 2019, CupcakKe came out of retirement after a 40-day absence on all social media platforms with a tweet; "Jesus fasted for 40 days & so did I...... Nov 16th".[43] On March 6, 2020, CupcakKe released a new single, "Lawd Jesus."[44] CupcakKe uploaded her first video to YouTube since her previous deletion of all videos on her channel in 2019 with the double video for singles "Grilling Niggas" and "Lawd Jesus", released on May 13, 2020.[45]

On June 1, 2020, CupcakKe released the single "Lemon Pepper"[46] with half of the proceeds going towards the Minnesota Bail fund.[47] Another single, "Discounts" was released on June 26, 2020.[48] The song peaked at number 78 on the UK Singles Downloads Chart and number 80 on the UK Singles Sales Chart, becoming her first single to do so.[49][50]

Discography

Studio albums

List of albums, with selected chart positions, sales, and certifications

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US Heat [51]	US Indie [52]	NZ Heat [53]
Audacious	Released: October 14, 2016 Label: Self-released Formats: CD, digital download	—	—	—
Queen Elizabitch	Released: March 31, 2017 Label: Self-released Formats: CD, digital download	—	—	—
Ephorize	Released: January 5, 2018 Label: Self-released Formats: CD, digital download	2	18	6
Eden	Released: November 9, 2018 Label: Self-released Format: Digital download	—	—	—

Mixtapes

List of albums, with selected chart positions, sales, and certifications

Title	Album details
Cum Cake	Released: February 9, 2016 Label: Self-released Formats: CD, digital download
S.T.D (Shelters to Deltas)	Released: June 19, 2016 Label: Self-released Formats: CD, digital download

Singles

As lead artist

Title	Year	Peak chart positions				Album
		US Dig. [54]	US R&B/HH Dig. [55]	SCO [56]	UK Down. [57]
"Vagina"	2015	–	–	–	–	Cum Cake
"Deepthroat"		–	–	–	–
"Juicy Coochie"	2016	–	–	–	–
"Best Dick Sucker"		–	–	–	–	S.T.D (Shelters to Deltas)
"Panda (Remix)"		–	–	–	–
"Picking Cotton"		–	–	–	–	Audacious
"Cumshot"	2017	–	–	–	–	Queen Elizabitch
"Biggie Smalls"		–	–	–	–
"Exit"		–	–	–	–	Ephorize
"Cartoons"		–	–	–	–
"Quiz"	2018	–	–	–	–	Eden
"Hot Pockets"		–	–	–	–	Non-album single
"Blackjack"[58]		–	–	–	–	Eden
"Squidward Nose"	2019	–	–	–	–	Non-album singles
"Bird Box"[59]		–	–	–	–
"Ayesha"[60]		–	–	–	–
"Whoregasm"[61]		–	–	–	–
"Grilling Niggas"[62]		–	–	–	–
"Lawd Jesus"[63]	2020	–	–	–	–
"Lemon Pepper"[46]		–	–	–	–
"Discounts"		10	6	70	78

As featured artist

Title	Year	Album
"Man Pussy" (M.A.N. II featuring Cupcakke)	2016	204ever
"Cabbage (Remix) (Ladies and Fellas)" (ETSWHORE featuring Cupcakke)		Non-album single
"Pu$y Market" (Gumball Machine featuring Cupcakke)		Professional Fame
"PÜ$Y (RemiXXX)" (George G featuring Cupcakke)		Non-album singles
"2 Bad Azz Bitches" (Brian Castle featuring Cupcakke)
"Situation" (Xavi Got Bars featuring Cupcakke)
"Trouble in Hollywood!" (Mise Darling featuring Cupcakke)		Plastic Love
"Boy" (K.I.D. featuring Cupcakke)	2017	Poster Child
"Get Ya Shine On" (So Drove featuring Cupcakke, Kreayshawn and TT The Artist)		Non-album singles
"Loverboy" (Nico Raimont featuring Cupcakke)
"Queens of the Streets" (Petey Plastic featuring Cupcakke)
"Lick You" (Dante Dcasso featuring Cupcakke)
"Party Like a Pornstar" (Jamez Hunter featuring Cupcakke)
"Like a Snapback" (Benzo Fly featuring Cupcakke)	2018	Different Mind State
"Drip" (Keiston featuring Osha So Gutta and Cupcakke)		Elevated
"Falling Fast" (Tucker William featuring Cupcakke)		Falling Fast – The Remixes
"Ass & Titties" (Kazzie featuring Cupcakke)		Non-album singles
"School Night" (Greer featuring Cupcakke)
"No Fats, No Femmes" (Big Momma featuring Cupcakke)		MILF
"Bitter Chocolate" (Sage Charmaine featuring Cupcakke)		Non-album single
"Ripe" (Banoffee featuring Cupcakke)	2020	Look at Us Now Dad
"Shake Sum" (Kidd Kenn featuring Cupcakke)		Child's Play

Guest appearances

Title	Year	Other artist(s)	Album
"Lipgloss"	2017	Charli XCX	Number 1 Angel
"I Got It"		Charli XCX, Brooke Candy, Pabllo Vittar	Pop 2
"Iced Out Dick"	2018	LIL PHAG	God Hates Lil Phag
"LMK (What's Really Good)"		Kelela, Princess Nokia, Junglepussy, Ms. Boogie	Take Me a_Part, the Remixes
"Safari Zone"	2019	Aja	BOX Office
"Shake It"		Charli XCX, Big Freedia, Brooke Candy, Pabllo Vittar	Charli

Tours

• The Marilyn Monhoe Tour (2017)[64]
• The Ephorize Tour (2018)[65]
• The Eden Tour (2018–2019)[66]

See also

• Music of Illinois

References

1. Simpson, Paul. "CupcakKe - Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved October 13, 2019.
2. "cupcakKe on Apple Music". Apple Music.
3. Song, Sandra (February 12, 2016). "Listen To Raunchy Chicago Rapper CupcakKe's Anti-Predatory Anthem "Pedophile"". Paper. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
4. "40 Best Rap Albums of 2016". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
5. Pearce, Sheldon. "9 Great Rap Mixtapes You Might Have Missed This Year". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 17, 2016.
6. Drake, David. "Bout to Blow: 10 Dope Songs You Should Be Hearing Everywhere Soon". Complex.com.
7. Zeichner, Naomi (June 27, 2016). "Best Rappers to Watch 2016". TheFader.com. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
8. Breihan, Tom. "On the Triumphant Nastiness of CupcakKe". Stereogum. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
9. "Meet Cupcakke, the Sex-Positive Rapper Preaching Self Love". Teen Vogue. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
10. Harris, Elizabeth [@CupcakKe_rapper] (May 4, 2017). "Yes I am 19 turning 20 on May 31" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 5, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2017 – via Twitter.
11. Downing, Andy. "Concert preview: Chicago rapper Cupcakke brings her "Vagina" monologue to MINT". columbusalive.com. Columbus Alive. Archived from the original on February 8, 2017. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
12. Carvey, Meghan (November 24, 2016). "The True, Freaky Originality of CupcakKe – MTV". Retrieved January 19, 2017.
13. Drake, David (April 7, 2016). "A Conversation With CupcakKe, Whose Explicit Sex Raps Are Just the Tip of the Iceberg". Complex.com. Retrieved July 18, 2016.
14. "cupcakKe – YouTube". Youtube. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
15. Zane, Zachary (March 30, 2017). "A Kiki with CupcakKe: The Audacious Rapper Is a Queer Icon in the Making". Out. Here Media Inc. Retrieved April 19, 2017.
16. "CupcakKe Announces New Album "Audacious"". Fader.com. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
17. Nast, Condé. "Meet Cupcakke, the Sex-Positive Rapper Preaching Self Love". Teen Vogue. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
18. "Charli XCX Announced Number 1 Angel Mixtape, Shared Three New Songs". The FADER. Retrieved March 7, 2017.
19. Elizabeth Harris [@CupcakKe_rapper] (March 24, 2017). "NEW ALBUM QUEEN ELIZABITCH OUT NOW ON iTUNES 8:30 PM on 03/31/17" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
20. "Listen To CupcakKe's New Album Queen Elizabitch". The FADER. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
21. "Stream CupcaKke Queen Elizabitch". Stereogum. March 31, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2017.
22. Jenkins, Craig. "Ephorize Is CupcakKe's Major Breakthrough". Vulture. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
23. Lee, Christina (April 8, 2017). "Cupcakke's 'Queen Elizabitch' Taken Down From Streaming Services". Idolator. Archived from the original on June 25, 2017. Retrieved April 9, 2017.
24. "XIT (@cupcakkeafreakk)". Instagram. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
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26. MonHOE, Marilyn (December 20, 2017). "New album "Ephorize" 1/5/18pic.twitter.com/pLnZHvVM63". @CupcakKe_rapper. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
27. Murphy, Sarah (January 5, 2018). "Cupcakke 'Ephorize' (album stream)". Exclaim!. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
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29. Lobenfield, Claire (January 9, 2018). "CupcakKe: Ephorize Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
30. "Watch CupcakKe's extremely NSFW 'Duck Duck Goose' video".
31. "CupcakKe's 'Fullest' Video Is the February Beach Party We Need".
32. O'Connor, Roisin. "Cupcakke: Rapper confirmed as safe by Chicago police after troubling tweet and Instagram post". Independent. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
33. Holmes, Charles (January 8, 2019). "CupcakKe Reportedly Safe After Hospitalization, Suicidal Tweet". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
34. Hosken, Patrick (January 11, 2019). "Surprise! CupcakKe's New Song 'Squidward Nose' Is Actually About Sex". MTV News. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
35. Alston, Trey (February 21, 2019). "CupcakKe Drops On The Deck And Flops Like A Fish In 'Squidward Nose' Video". MTV News. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
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39. Breihan, Tom (September 23, 2019). "CupcakKe Tearfully Announces That She Is Retiring & Removing Music From Streaming Platforms". Stereogum. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
40. C, Noah (September 23, 2019). "Cupcakke Announces Retirement On Instagram Live". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
41. Daly, Rhian (September 23, 2019). "CupcakKe announces she's quitting music: "I feel like I'm corrupting the youth"". NME. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
42. Moorwood, Victoria (September 23, 2019). "CupcakKe Has Social Media Meltdown That Results In Her Retirement Announcement". HipHopDX. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
43. Denton, Jack (November 6, 2019). "CupcakKe teases a return from retirement". The Fader. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
44. "CupcakKe Returns With New Song "Lawd Jesus"". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
45. CupcakKe - Grilling N****S | Lawd Jesus (Official Music Video), retrieved May 20, 2020
46. "Lemon Pepper - Single by cupcakKe". Apple Music. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
47. "Listen to rapper CupcakKe's fierce new track, 'Discounts'". NME Music News, Reviews, Videos, Galleries, Tickets and Blogs | NME.COM. June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 28, 2020.
48. "Discounts - Single by cupcakKe". Apple Music. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
49. "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100 | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
50. "Official Singles Sales Chart Top 100 | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
51. "Heatseekers Albums". Retrieved January 18, 2018.
52. "Independent Albums". Retrieved January 18, 2018.
53. "NZ Heatseeker Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. January 15, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2018.
54. "CupcakKe Chart History (Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
55. "CupcakKe Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
56. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 – Date: 03 July 2020 - 09 July 2020". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
57. "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100 – Date: 03 July 2020 - 09 July 2020". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
58. "8/3/18". Instagram. July 25, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
59. "Friday". March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 7, 2019 – via Twitter.
60. @CupcakKe_rapper (June 29, 2019). "7/5/19" (Tweet). Retrieved June 30, 2019 – via Twitter.
61. @CupcakKe_rapper (August 1, 2019). ""Whoregasm" 8/8/19" (Tweet). Retrieved August 2, 2019 – via Twitter.
62. "Grilling Niggas by cupcakKe on Spotify". Spotify. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
63. @CupcakKe_rapper (March 1, 2020). "3/6/2020" (Tweet). Retrieved March 2, 2020 – via Twitter.
64. McNeilage, Ross (April 4, 2017). "CupcakKe Announces North American Dates For "Marilyn Monhoe Tour"". BreatheHeavy.com. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
65. "Marilyn MonHOE on Twitter announcing The Ephorize Tour".
66. @CuppcakKe_rapper (November 6, 2018). ""The Eden Tour" Get you Dickets now !!!!" (Tweet). Retrieved November 6, 2018 – via Twitter.

External links

• Cupcakke on YouTube
• Cupcakke on Twitter