Raina Simone

Raina Simone is a Hip Hop artist from Harlem, NY and Englewood,NJ. By the age of 3, Raina could play the piano, and was beginning to piece together lyrics. Filmed by Howard University classmates; In 2021 a viral freestyle gaining 3 million views in 24 hrs, "Sometimes I Rap" to Nas and Lauryn Hill's "If I Ruled the World" instrumental; launched Raina Simone into the Rap game. Having previously identified solely as a producer, Raina Simone began releasing songs as a rapper/singer/songwriter. The following year, a second freestyle would go viral as a "response to drill music." Originally freestyle'd on New Jersey platform "Blades and Bars," the freestyle was rereleased as "To My Hearts Outro," the outro on Raina Simone's first EP "To My Hearts" released in 2022. In 2023, Raina Simone appeared on "Minority Report" by Ransom and Nicholas Craven feat. Talib Kweli. Raina Simone has proven the depths of her skills, heard on On The Radar Radio, Sway’s Universe, BarsOnI95, Shade45XM's The Punchline Academy, Hot97/Power105.1/V100.7. Raina Simone has also been acknowledged for her published written critical analyses regarding race, women, gender, and sexual orientation in Hip Hop.
In the final quarter of 2024; Raina Simone released her debut album project “Old Soul New Conscience.” The album touches upon a wide range of topics and explores diverse sonic landscapes rooted in storytelling and history. The album features Ransom, R2r Moe, J.P., HD4President, Youngsta CPT and DJ Jayhood. Showcasing both her skills as a producer, and an artist; Raina Simone delivered a Hip Hop Classic. The album has amassed over 500k streams, and over a million views across platforms. The breakout single “Ruler,” from the album, has gained significant notoriety and has garnered airplay on 16 radio stations including Hot 97. Raina’s talents have attracted cosigns to the likes of Ransom, Chuck D, Erykah Badu, Shaq, Chris Brown, Ghostface Killah, and more renowned contributors to the art form. In partnership with BET’s amplified; Raina Simone is BET’s artist of the month for the month of April 2025. As new listeners continue to discover the hidden treasure that is “Old Soul New Conscience,” Raina Simone is currently working on the Deluxe version of the album approach in which she’s taken a DJ Khaled-like producers’ approach to adding new features and textures to the songs already on the album. Additionally, there will be 3 new records. Raina Simone is dedicated to leaving a long lasting impression on listeners by way of cultural preservation, and achieving longevity in the sharing of our narratives through hip hop.