Dallas newcomer Erica Banks released her self-titled debut project for 1501 Certified Entertainment on Friday (June 19) and has instantly drawn comparisons to Megan Thee Stallion, from her cadence to her flow and more.
Many are drawing comparisons to how Megan came up under the 1501 label from car freestyles to mannerisms and created a new wave of female artists in the same vein that Lil Wayne gave birth to many styles and Young Thug gave birth to the likes of Gunna and Lil Keed.
Banks’ brushed off the accusations that she was a Megan copycat, pointing out that Texas rappers all sound very similar regardless of location. “Only ppl from Texas understand we all have the same “accent” lol,” she tweeted. She later followed it up saying, “Been getting a lot of “I was wrong about you, you hard” messages.. don’t let social media influence you before actually checkin somebody out, you just might like em.”
Still, that hasn’t kept social media critics from judging Banks mostly due to her affiliation with 1501 after the label’s recent drama with its biggest star. Earlier this year, friction arose between Megan and 1501 label head Carl Crawford after the “Savage” rapper wanted to renegotiate her contract. After a public back-and-forth in the press, a judge ruled in Megan’s favor, granting her an injunction to release her Suga project.
Banks released a flurry of projects in 2019 before striking with her first noticeable hit, the Nelly “Hot In Herre” sampling “Buss It.” The conversation surrounding her and 1501’s first big star won’t die down anytime soon as numerous critics pointed out on Twitter.
Listen to Erica Banks for yourself and see the discussion surrounding Banks below.
Erica Banks