By Janice Malone
When discussing the realm of popular music, Memphis boasts a rich and illustrious legacy that it can take great pride in. In this contemporary era, hip hop recording artist and songwriter Tre Loaded has successfully positioned himself among the esteemed ranks of Memphis’ musical icons. One of his latest singles, “Another Whip,” has already achieved remarkable success, amassing more than 2.7 million streams worldwide. This follows the impressive performance of his 2023 viral hit “Vo Flow,” which garnered more than 1.2 million views on YouTube and more than 6 million streams globally. The excitement surrounding “Another Whip” has been further amplified by a notable endorsement from Kiyan Anthony, the son of NBA superstar Carmelo Anthony. At just 21 years old, this versatile East Memphis young talent is poised to continue his momentum with the highly anticipated release of his upcoming car-themed mixtape LOADED on Aug. 16. It features 12 tracks. Tre makes evocative trap music that reflects the reality of the streets, and relates to Gen Z fans worldwide.
In these five questions, the young father of a 2-year-old son, talks about his fame as a hip hop star, being a dad and his upcoming music.
TRIBUNE: I understand that Carmelo Anthony’s son (Kiyan) is a big fan of yours.
TRE: Yes. It all started when the person who does his videos used one of my songs behind the video. He then posted it one of his social media pages. And from there, we just started texting and communicating with each other.
TRIBUNE: You’re next project LOADED, will drop Aug. 16. What’s the creative process when you’re writing and putting new music together?
TRE: A lot of my music is fast turn up music that you can dance to. It’s like, I just find a beat that I mess with it, and it probably takes me a good 30 minutes…Yeah, a good 30 minutes to get a song together. I enjoy a new song and boom, I’m on to the next song. I write about what I’ve been living. I just tell fans what’s been going on. I go with whatever literally comes into my head.
TRIBUNE: Have you and your uncle, Memphis rap pioneer Don Trip, ever had a freestyle battle?
TRE: Naaahhh. I mean, we’ve done freestyle just for fun. He’s helped me so much with things about the music business. I used to be in the studio with him a lot when I was a kid. I’ve learned a lot from him. But I’ve still had to learn a lot on my own. I’m still learning and still building.
TRIBUNE: Do you ever get fearful that being a hip hop star may be dangerous for you from jealousy or for whatever reason?
TRE: I don’t. I mean, I feel like I protect myself to the fullest. I mean that’s just another perk about being from Memphis. Even as a kid, you just gotta be at peace anyway, cause anything could happen. It’s just built into me. So now, I’m just prepared for almost anything.
TRIBUNE: What’s the coolest thing about being a young dad?
TRE: Definitely watching my son grow up. Like, I’ve been there since he was first born. So go from holding him as a baby, and now he’s walking, talking and running around…When he hears my music or watches my videos, he starts saying ‘Da da! Da da!’ and starts dancing. (LoL)
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