Building Hello Lelo Behind the Scenes: Creating a Faster, Safer, and More Scalable Website
Over the past few months, much of my work on Hello Lelo hasn’t been visible to readers. While publishing content remains important, I have spent a significant amount of time focusing on something even more critical: building a stronger technical foundation that can support future growth.
As many website owners know, growing traffic is exciting until your website starts struggling under the…
On the heels of a momentous run with the recent release of his first Ghettotech-inspired song "Get Geeked", a standout performance at Rolling Loud Orlando, as well as his latest EP Mastiff, New Detroit artist Lelo has shared a new EP, Pink Tiles – out now. Arriving as a fusion of 80's Ghettotech music and his experimental rap sound, Pink Tiles is named after a regional commonality within Detroit homes and serves as an accompanying EP to Mastiff –– with each side showing off a different, distinct sonic side to Lelo's ever-evolving artistic identity.
Combining generations of localized sounds and subgenres to the New Detroit movement, Mastiff and Pink Tiles are the latest boundary-pushing project working to cement Lelo as not only the face of New Detroit, but also a mainstay in the modern Hip-Hop scene. This EP arrives after Lelo stopped by The Lot Radio in New York for a DJ set in April, foreshadowing the electronic influences permeating his new sound. After this release, Lelo is set to hit the road this summer for his headlining Mastiff: Pink Tiles Tour, which kicks off on July 6th in Toronto after Lelo made his debut Rolling Loud set in Orlando last weekend, as well as Summerfest in June.
Performing alongside Groovepill and comprised of 13 tour dates and two festivals, as well as a Boiler Room performance in NYC alongside JID, Kenny Beats and TiaCorine, the forthcoming Mastiff: Pink Tiles Tour will bring Lelo's New Detroit sound to the masses after a breakout year in 2025. After Lelo's biggest streaming debut yet with recent single "Monetize" (8.5M+ Streams), the release of "Yoppenheimer Remix" with JoeyBada$$, and his January single "Dice Roll" (5M+ Streams), the Mastiff and Pink Tiles EPs are just the latest move in a momentous start to 2026 and serve as a prime example of how he's continuing to evolve his New Detroit sound –– which he's contextualized in recent profiles with Pitchfork, Highsnobiety and The FADER.
After being stamped by both Billboard and COMPLEX as a 2026 Artist to Watch to kick off the year, Lelo has lived up to the name, keeping the momentum going after a triumphant 2025 debut album, New Detroit (7.8 rating + 7th Best Rap Album of the year from Pitchfork) and a subsequent sold-out four city headlining New Detroit Tour.While new to a more national spotlight, Lelo has been a consistent standout within the regional Detroit scene. Early works such as "Hughes" (10M+ Streams) and "Daybreakers" grabbed immediate attention from new listeners, bolstering a rocket-like ascent for the young lyricist. Listeners have had the opportunity to witness Lelo reimagine the Detroit sound in real time, with each new output offering a unique sonic experience within the usually familiar sound.
More experimental production choices, like the inclusion of 80s Detroit House music within his instrumentals, are responsible for the undeniable intrigue that his music brings. The bold, Sade-sampling "Main Event" (28M+ Streams) in tandem with his other 2025 singles earned him strong praise from fellow artists such as EarlSweatshirt, Pi'erreBourne, LUCKI, and BrentFaiyaz, just to name a few. Though the voice of many through his growing "New Detroit" movement, the young standout prefers to operate alone on his projects, impressively surpassing over a million monthly listeners before ever releasing a song with a feature. The Motor City has much to look forward to with their very own Lelo leading the charge.
Please find links to stream Pink Tiles and buy tickets for the Mastiff: Pink Tiles Tour!
Lelo has just released his new EP Mastiff – out now, alongside a music video for "Dialect". Named after the English Mastiff dog breed that Lelo grew up around in Detroit, this EP reflects the rugged and gritty Detroit energy of Lelo's upbringing that he continues to implement into his ever-evolving New Detroit sound –– including the recently-released "Monetize" and 5 new tracks that bolster Lelo's braggadocios side.= The accompanying music video for "Dialect" is shot in one take, taking inspiration from Lil Wayne's iconic "A Milli" video, finding Lelo rapping in front of a graffitied "New Detroit" banner –– representing the new genre of music he's been pioneering. This EP arrives on the heels of Lelo's biggest streaming debut yet with recent single "Monetize" (6M+ Streams) and the recent release of "Yoppenheimer Remix" with JoeyBada$$. Mastiff is just the latest move in a momentous start to 2026 for Lelo, following profiles in Pitchfork, Highsnobiety and The FADER where he continued to contextualize his expansive New Detroit sound and a DJ set / performance at The Lot Radio with Rap Rave after being stamped by both Billboard and COMPLEX as a 2026 Artist to Watch. All of which has touched down following his triumphant 2025 debut album, New Detroit (7.8 rating + 7th Best Rap Album of the year from Pitchfork) and a subsequent sold-out four city headlining New Detroit Tour. The release of Mastiff precedes Lelo's upcoming Rolling Loud debut later this week, as well as a forthcoming appearance at Summer Fest alongside Don Toliver in June.
While new to a more national spotlight, Lelo has been a consistent standout within the regional Detroit scene. Early works such as "Hughes" (6M+ Streams) and "Daybreakers" grabbed immediate attention from new listeners, bolstering a rocket-like ascent for the young lyricist. Listeners have had the opportunity to witness Lelo reimagine the Detroit sound in real time, with each new output offering a unique sonic experience within the usually familiar sound. More experimental production choices, like the inclusion of 80s Detroit House music within his instrumentals, are responsible for the undeniable intrigue that his music brings. The bold, Sade-sampling "Main Event" in tandem with his other 2025 singles earned him strong praise from fellow artists such as EarlSweatshirt, Pi'erreBourne, LUCKI, and BrentFaiyaz, just to name a few. Though the voice of many through his growing "New Detroit" movement, the young standout prefers to operate alone on his projects, impressively surpassing over a million monthly listeners before ever releasing a song with a feature. The Motor City has much to look forward to with their very own Lelo leading the charge.
Kehlani's new album is incredible. Her songwriting ability is elite. She's like an old school artist who knows how to make full songs (chorus, three verses, and a bridge). And her pussy inspired some of the greatest songs of recent history. I'm ready to stamp her as one of the GOATs, fuck it. 😂
Earlier this week, I learned 702's Steelo song had a sample while listening to a sports radio show of all things. And the sample was from The Police's Voices In My Head. Sting has quietly been feeding Hip Hop and R&B for generations, while fucking those same artists out of their publishing. It's quite fascinating.
Lelo has just linked up with Multi-Platinum Brooklyn rapper JoeyBada$$ for a Remix of "Yoppenheimer" – out now via 10K Projects. After Joey Bada$$ co-signed Lelo through a fit check earlier this year, the arrival of this Remix revives Lelo's 2024 breakout single (35M+ Streams), blending the rhyme schemes of classic Brooklyn Hip-Hop with Detroit's gritty melodic sensibilities. "This song reflects my daily feelings; getting fly is regular to me. I wanted fans to feel what I feel every day; this song perfectly depicts that", explains Lelo. "Having an artist like Joey Bada $$ feel the impact of this song enough to want to hop on the remix was fly in itself; it just made sense".
The “Yoppenheimer Remix" serves as the first offering from Joey Bada$$ following a widely circulated statement he posted on X criticizing lyrical rappers for shying away from collaboration. Following Babyface Ray last year ("On the Wall"), Joey Bada$$ marks the second artist to fully embrace Lelo's New Detroit movement through a collaboration, while serving as Joey Bada$$'s first feature in two years. An exclamation mark on Lelo's current run, the "Yoppenheimer Remix" arrives a month after the release of "Monetize", his biggest streaming debut yet, profiles in Pitchfork and The FADER where he continued to contextualize his ever-growing New Detroit sound, as well as recent stamps by Billboard and COMPLEX as a 2026 Artist to Watch.
All of which has touched down following his triumphant 2025 debut project, New Detroit (7.8 rating + 7th Best Rap Album of the year from Pitchfork) and subsequent sold-out four city headlining New Detroit Tour, as well as a recent set alongside Rap Rave at The Lot Radio in NYC, his upcoming Rolling Loud debut, and an appearance at Summer Fest appearance alongside Don Toliver in June. The undeniable momentum from Lelo has garnered attention from a myriad of fans and outlets, with notable co-signs coming from the likes of XXL, Pigeons & Planes, Pitchfork, The FADER, and Hypebeast.
While new to a more national spotlight, Lelo has been a consistent standout within the regional Detroit scene. Early works such as "Hughes" (6M+ Streams) and "Daybreakers" grabbed immediate attention from new listeners, bolstering a rocket-like ascent for the young lyricist. Listeners have had the opportunity to witness Lelo reimagine the Detroit sound in real time, with each new output offering a unique sonic experience within the usually familiar sound.
More experimental production choices, like the inclusion of 80s Detroit House music within his instrumentals, are responsible for the undeniable intrigue that his music brings. The bold, Sade-sampling "Main Event" in tandem with his other 2025 singles earned him strong praise from fellow artists such as EarlSweatshirt, Pi'erreBourne, LUCKI, and BrentFaiyaz, just to name a few. Though the voice of many through his growing "New Detroit" movement, the young standout prefers to operate alone on his projects, impressively surpassing over a million monthly listeners before ever releasing a song with a feature. The Motor City has much to look forward to with their very own Lelo leading the charge.
I wanna thank the woman on TikTok for putting me on to Lelo and this song earlier this week.
I'm a little bit surprised how much people love Breny Faiyaz new album. Specifically the people that are not fans of his music. Some of them are talking about it like it's the greatest music they've ever heard. And someone like me that's a Brent fan feel like some of his previous albums is way better than icon. I don't know if it's because they're aware of Raphael Sadiq being the executive producer or if they really feel that way. But I'm glad Brent is finally getting his respect.
I wasn't expecting The Cool Kids to surprise us with putting one of the greatest mixtapes of the blog era on streams to celebrate its 17th anniversary, but I'm glad they did.
And lastly, sometimes you have to play some old Gunna to remind yourself the amount of bangers he has and how long he's been blessing us with fire tunes.