If you’re a fan of $NOT, then you may already be familiar with the sonic talents of Eem Triplin, a 21-year-old rapper and producer from Johnstown, PA. With a thunderous style of production, Eem possesses an innate ability to construct expansive, captivating soundscapes. After years of tailoring beats for others, he’s finally started saving some of his creations for himself, many of which sound as though they’ve descended upon us from another galaxy—one where “Louie V” belts are worn on your head.

Eem Triplin’s 2022 has seen a momentous start, as the seven singles he’s dropped this year have gone on to become the best performing releases of his career thus far. His most notable song has been “Awkward Freestyle” which samples Tyler, The Creator’s 2013 song “Awkward.” Following several weeks of virality on TikTok, the single surpassed two million plays on Spotify alone, grabbing the attention of Tyler himself in the process. When asked if he was surprised to see that Tyler acknowledged his music, Eem says, “It was a mix of both. Of course in the back of my mind I was trying to catch his attention but I didn’t think that it would happen so fast and that he would publicly show a song of mine love.”

Despite this sudden growth in popularity, Eem has no intention of changing who he is at his core. “The only thing that changes is how people perceive me,” he explains. “I’ve been consistently working at the same pace I am now as I was five years ago when I first started making beats. I know that I need to keep the new fans happy and engaged but I’m also going to keep pushing my creative boundaries because that’s what has gotten me here.”

As the days and months push forward, we’re excited to see how Eem Triplin evolves as an artist. “The way my music sounds is an expression of who I am as both an artist and a producer right now,” Eem says. “It will become more polished as I evolve further but as for now, I am just doing what sounds good to me.