Every month, Consequence proudly puts the spotlight on an artist who’s poised for the big time with our CoSign accolade. For November 2023, we’re spotlighting the charismatic, confident, rising Lola Brooke and her debut LP, Dennis Daughter. You can listen to the entire episode via our Consequence UNCUT podcast wherever you get your podcasts, or using the player below.
For many, their first taste of Brooklyn rapper Lola Brooke came with 2021’s in-your-face banger “Don’t Play with It.” The track’s skittering trap beat, aggressive flow, and sheer confidence made it a favorite both in the scene and online, sparking somewhat of a viral trend. In the two years since, Lola has hunkered down, developed herself as an artist, and dropped some great one-off tracks along the way. Today (Friday, November 9th), she finally arrives with her much-anticipated debut album, Dennis Daughter, and by the looks of it, a whole lot more people are about to learn of the rising talent.
And yet, talking with Brooke, it’s clear she doesn’t view the new project as an introduction of any kind. From her perspective, her official “hello” came quite a bit ago. She’s been dropping music for years, rapping for even longer, and through it all, she’s simply remained Lola. Dennis Daughter, while a “first” on paper, is merely an extension of the art she’s been working on for a large chunk of her life. She’s the same bold, determined, music-loving Lola Brooke as when she started, so what exactly is she introducing?
“I’ve never had a tingle inside me that didn’t allow me to be patient. I’ve been very patient with myself and my craft and I know timing is everything,” Brooke says of finally releasing a debut full-length. “It’s just a continuation of who Lola Brooke is. I feel as though I’ve been doing music for a while, so I’m over the reintroduction [phase] or introducing myself. Wherever people pick up at is where they pick up at.”
And while it’s most certainly not an introduction, Dennis Daughter is a pretty damn good time to, as she puts it, pick up on Lola Brooke. Beyond the inclusion of “Don’t Play with It,” remixed with new features from Latto and Yung Miami, the record is a concise distillation of Brooke as a rapper, artist, and — most importantly — a human.
The songs find Brooke tapping into a wide range of emotions, showcasing the rapper’s talent for fronting everything from boastful bangers to vulnerable introspections. Tracks like the self-aggrandizing “I Am Lola” (which uses the rapper’s name for the hook) and the anthemic stand-out “Best Side” present the image of Lola that has captured the attention of rap fans around the globe — it’s the artist at her most confident and puffed-up, and it commands respect.
Then, later on in the tracklist, Brooke goes inward and reveals her emotional side, with songs like the love-sick “Vacant Heart” and uncertain “Dear Dennis.” Somehow, it’s also her best side.
