Producer-rapper duo, Aminé and Kaytranda, release joint album

After collaborating for almost a decade, producer Kaytranada and rapper Aminé have combined efforts to create an intricate joint album. Here, we’ll introduce you to the artists that make up the duo, and the duo’s debut album, Kaytraminé. 

Who is Aminé?

Aminé first came to the scene with his commercial debut single Caroline, which hit number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Shortly after, this was followed by his debut studio album, Good for You (2017). It was after this that Aminé showed his talent for carefully curated collaborations, releasing mixtape OnePointFive in 2018, which features tracks with G Herbo, Gunna, and Rico Nasty. It was executively produced by Aminé himself, and produced along with LDG Beats, Charlie Brown, Ckwnce, and Davon Jamison. 

Notable singles from the mixtape include two casino-inspired tracks Reel It In – and the subsequent remix featuring Gucci Mane – and Blackjack. Of course, when Aminé first penned these tracks back in 2018, the ability to play live blackjack and online slot games was not as widespread as it is today, where multiple online casinos offer immersive live and on-demand games for an authentic experience. That said, Aminé’s lyrics in Blackjack are immersive, authentic, and relatable in their own right, dropping rhymes like “I stack that, make that, break that, take that. Got a hundred ways I can flip that, get back”. Blackjack was then remixed and re-released as a collaboration with Cordae. 

Since then, Aminé has penned three more studio albums and mixtapes, – Limbo (2020), TwoPointFive (2021), and, most recently, the name-meshing Kaytraminé (2023) (with Kaytranada. 

Who is Kaytranada?

Kaytranada released his debut studio album, 99.9% back in 2016 to critical acclaim. This was followed up by Bubba in 2019. Two years after its release, Bubba and one of its singles, 10% featuring Kali Uchis, bagged two Grammy Awards – Best Dance/Electronic Album and Best Dance Recording respectively. 

Over the years, Kaytranada has also thrived with collaborative projects, working with GoldLink, AlunaGeorge, Craig David, Pharrell Williams, and Estelle, and has long since made up half of the duo The Celestics with his brother, Lou Phelps. Kaytranada also features on two of Lancey Foux’s tracks from the 2022 album, LIFE IN HELL. 

In 2023, Kaytranada performed at Coachella, with Kali Uchis and Aminé joining the beatmaker on stage to perform Grammy-winning 10%, and to debut the brand new track 4EVA, taken from Kaytraminé. 

Joint album, Kaytraminé

Kaytraminé is the self-titled debut studio album of the rapper-producer duo of the same name. It is said that the pair first became aware of each other’s work when Aminé remixed (and unofficially released) Kaytranada’s At All back in 2014. After this, the pair continued to develop a musical bond, with Kaytranada producing three songs on Aminé’s Calling Brio mixtape in 2015, as well as producing other projects where Aminé is named as a featured artist. 

Released in May 2023, this epic record features guest appearances from big names like Pharrell Williams, Big Sean, Freddie Gibbs, Amaarae, and Snoop Dogg, mixing explorative jazz-inspired riffs and samples cut straight from Bollywood films with grungy lyrics. The debut single from the debut album was released a month earlier – 4EVA featuring Pharrell Williams. The second single, Rebuke, dropped shortly before the full album hit the waves. 

So far, Kaytraminé has peaked at 92 in the Billboard 200, 41 in the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and reached heights of 16 in the Billboard Independent Albums chart.