In mid-October, the Hip Hop Museum threw a benefit gala in a lush building on Wall Street in Lower Manhattan. The black-tie event wasn\u2019t just a fundraiser for the new museum<\/a>,\u202fa prominent endeavor dedicated to the history of hip-hop and expected to open in 2026 in the Bronx. It was a celebration of the genre, the people who have shaped the industry and hip-hop\u2019s influence on pop culture. The event\u2019s location in the country\u2019s financial heart is telling of hip-hop’s mainstream importance.<\/p>\n Rapper Yolanda \u201cYo-Yo\u201d Whitaker emceed the night, and Nas addressed the room, which included artists<\/a> like Big Daddy Kane, Doug E. Fresh and Just Blaze, music industry executives, philanthropists and others. Slick Rick was honored for his storytelling abilities, Fat Joe was named \u201cPeople\u2019s Champ\u201d for his roots in the Bronx, and a slate of other awards recognized the late Uptown Records founder and Motown executive Andre Harrell, scholar Michael Eric Dyson and others.<\/p>\n The Next Up Award, though, given to an up-and-coming artist ready to represent the future of hip-hop, went to a 21-year-old New Orleanian from Uptown: La Reezy.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel it\u2019s a bold move, but I agree,\u201d says La Reezy<\/a> with a charming grin and a laugh. \u201cFor them to make that stamp, that\u2019s a historical stamp to make, so only time will prove it.\u201d<\/p>\n It has been a breakout year for Khayree Salahuddin, the New Orleans native better known as La Reezy. The rapper and producer<\/a> has released three projects in 2025, including an EP with Grammy-winner PJ Morton, and there\u2019s a fourth release expected on Nov. 28. He\u2019s currently on tour<\/a> in the U.S. supporting British rapper Little Simz, and he has the attention of Kendrick Lamar, one of today\u2019s most important rappers, and Tyler, The Creator, one of La Reezy\u2019s major influences.<\/p>\n But although the last year has snowballed into a breakout moment for La Reezy, behind it has been years of work, hundreds of songs written, dozens of music videos and a dedicated work ethic \u2014 with a cut off at 5 p.m. so he can get on his bike and ride to Audubon Park. All the while pursuing his own mental and personal wellbeing, a topic that comes up often in his music.<\/p>\n \u201cI knew what I was gonna do\u201d in 2025, says La Reezy, sitting in the shade outside of Cafe du Monde in City Park, the gala suit and bowtie<\/a> swapped for a white T-shirt airbrushed with \u201cLa Reezyana Shakedown\u201d and coordinated purple baseball hat and sneakers. He\u2019s a warm, engaging person and full of confidence. La Reezy believes in himself, and it\u2019s hard not to cheer him on.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I\u2019m still in my mama\u2019s house. You can\u2019t get this confused. I want this music [career] bad. I want this audience. I want people to know who I am,\u201d he says. \u201cI\u2019m hungry, and I wanted to show that, as a rapper, you have to have your mixtape era. Lil Wayne had to do it. Kendrick Lamar had to do it. It\u2019s part of this journey.\u201d<\/p>\n