From Billboard · Michael Saponara · · 1m 30s
Six acts, one sold-out Brooklyn night
Billboard's R&B Hip-Hop Live closed Power Players week with rising stars, scam rap and a full live band.
In brief
Billboard's R&B Hip-Hop Live closed Power Players week with rising stars, scam rap and a full live band. The night belonged to the rising stars: kwn drew the loudest reaction, and Samara Cyn sang it all live with no backing track. Originally reported by Billboard.
A sold-out Brooklyn night
Billboard's R&B Hip-Hop Live closed out Power Players week at Brooklyn Steel on Sept. 10, stacking R&B, hip-hop and Caribbean acts on one bill.
“capped off Power Players week with an electric show at a sold-out Brooklyn Steel”
Skippa opens with island heat
Billboard's first Caribbean Rising Star hit the stage just before 8:30 p.m. with four dancers, running trap-dancehall cuts like "WYFL" and songs off his 2026 album #Skippaholic.
Samara Cyn sings it live
The 2026 Hip-Hop Rising Star skipped the backing track her Gen Z peers lean on, opened with "Good Is a Lie" into "Sinner," and paused the set for a fan who needed medical help.
“Cyn doesn't need the training wheels”
kwn steals the room
A late addition to the lineup, the British singer pulled the biggest crowd reaction of the night. Fans went bar-for-bar on "Worst Behaviour" and sang every word of "Do What I Say."
Destin Conrad's fashion moment
The 26-year-old R&B Rising Star wore brown leather pants, a fedora and a caramel leather jacket, pulling from his two 2026 projects, Whimsy! and the reggae-leaning Roadrunner.
Yung Miami, then Lucky Daye
Miami brought scam rap back with "Spend Dat," a top 20 Hot 100 hit, plus City Girls' "Act Up." Lucky Daye closed with a live band, from "Roll Some Mo" to new single "Fly U Out."
“Gear up: The next Lucky Daye era is on the horizon.”
What to remember
The night belonged to the rising stars: kwn drew the loudest reaction, and Samara Cyn sang it all live with no backing track.
