It's easy to forget how young some of our favorite performers are when they enter the music world. From Michael Jackson's Jack 5 debut at the age of 11, to Lorde's chart-topping single "Royals" at the age of 16, it doesn't take much life experience to make a splash in the music industry. Tuesdays Under 21 is a Music Times feature dedicated to bringing attention to talented musicians and performers under the age of 21. Who knows? They just might be the next big thing.
WHO: Tink
WHERE: Chicago
AGE: 19
WHY: Tink may have started generating attention by rapping freestyle over beats from Migos' "Versace" and fellow Chicagoan Chief Keef. Her own originals veer far from trap rap however. Winter's Diary 2, the performer's newest mixtape-released January 10-puts the same emphasis on Tink's R&B half, as did the first chapter of Winter's Diary.
More impressive than the dichotomy of musical fronts presented on the tape is the number of approaches to the urban female character that Tink displays. Someone in Tink's position is surrounded by formats for what a female rapper/R&B performer could/should be: an objectified Rihanna, an alpha Beyoncé. Add that to the diversity in Chicago hip-hop ranging from Keef to Kanye. She's got a lot to choose from, and she wisely wears all the aforementioned outfits during these Winter's 15 tracks.
She plays a character loving for love ("Your Secrets") and loving less platonically ("When It Rains"). She plays the feminist ("Treat Me Like Somebody") and the freak ("Freak Like Me"). And when she finally gets around to rapping, she puts on her mean face, whether its talking down an unfaithful lover ("Talkin About"), or borrowing a page from Keef's book when handling a snitch ("The Confession").
The key is that no matter way character Tink opts to play, none of it feels out of place.
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