Leikeli47 has been dropping music for over a decade now.

In all that time, not once has she dropped her mask.

That’s right. The public has no idea of this woman’s real name.

But that doesn’t mean no one knows who she is. Leikeli’s mask and her music speak volumes. “Being Black, we gotta learn how to wear a mask early,” she says. Harvard Business Review very academically describes code-switching as “adjusting one’s style of speech, appearance, behavior, and expression in ways that will optimize the comfort of others in exchange for fair treatment, quality service, and employment opportunities.” It’s something most African-Americans practice every day, and it can be exhausting… or so habitual, it’s automatic. Instead, Leikeli is owning it, reclaiming the figurative mask society demands and turning it into a real one by choice.

“With the mask on, nobody knows me. Without the mask on, nobody knows me,” she says. “The mask, it represents freedom. I’m free with it on.” She confessed to Vibe Magazine that she hopes the mask also serves as inspiration. “It gives me the ability to create, to be free, to be fun. Music-making is a people business, and I wear this mask, not just for me, but for you. So you can get out there and do what you want. You can be the person that you wanna be, you can love who you wanna love. I hope today, this mask represents just being different.”

True to her vision, “Money” is all about being a standout, and it’s obvious from the start. The song is almost entirely Leikeli rapping over a single beat. And without all the overproduction, her flawless but still laid-back flow absolutely shines. But don’t let the title fool you. “Money” isn’t about currency at all. It’s about hustle. Specifically, Black hustle.

How do I know? It’s encoded. Leikeli leaves little love notes to the culture throughout the lyrics and video. My favorite of them is the line “All my life I had to grind and hustle / I had to work like Kobe just to shine like Russell,” because there’s sooooo much to unpack in that one little line that speaks to Leikeli’s brilliance. She’s shouting out Sofia from The Color Purple and her famous “All my life, I had to fight” monologue. Kobe & Russell is easy enough, right? Not if you said Russell Westbrook. The lady is talking about BILL Russell, basketball pioneer and defensive legend who never averaged more than 19 points per game in his 13 years on the court, but is second in all-time rebounds. The lyricism is off-the-charts, especially paired with Leikeli’s unique voice.

Everything about her says that she takes her craft and her individuality quite seriously, but her sense of humor and personal style shine through too. I promise you’ll smile AT LEAST once watching Leikeli, and her mask wardrobe alone is an entire lookbook. For a woman who hides her real face, she’s very good at expressing her real self. “I am going to tell my story, and I will let you know who I am, regardless,” she says. “You got to survive by any means necessary. My survival is my music and pressing play.”

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