Two years ago, the viral rapper Tay Money welcomed a young artist to the stage at Trees. They were in different periods of their careers: Tay was riding the success of TikTok hits like “The Assignment,” “Asthma Pump,” and “Bussin.” XBValentine was just getting started.
“This is the first song I’ve ever recorded as an LGBT artist,” she said to applause and screams.
She launched into “Vibe With You,” a song that few knew at the time but has since received a proper release with the Houston rapper Baby Bash. That evening, XBValentine wore a simple black T-shirt and jeans with a matching baseball cap, looking not unlike many in the audience who looked up at her during the TayDay Festival.
The Georgetown native has spent the last two years building an impressive resume and forging a deeper connection with her fans through her music. She has collaborated with artists like Paul Wall and Kap G. She opened for Chris Perez, Selena’s lead guitarist. This month, she released her debut album, Forever And A Day, much of which she wrote and recorded while living in Dallas.
“I’ve definitely learned that momentum and consistency are the most important things,” says XBValentine, whose real name is Bianca Rodriguez. “I’ve seen what consistency can do for you as far as how your fans are receiving everything, and I think the consistency is kind of what took me from being an opener to a headliner. But it’s also shown me that the hardest part isn’t necessarily getting to that point, it’s staying at that exact point.”
Forever And A Day manifests what XBValentine has been up to over the past few years. Over 11 tracks, she shares personal anecdotes of mental health, love, and the strenuous climb it took to get to where she is. Spitting fiery bars over rattling, percussive hip-hop beats, it’s no surprise that fans keep packing her shows.
These days, XBValentine, 26, adheres to a strict routine. She wakes up early to go to the gym. She comes home and cooks breakfast, then figures out the day she’s going to have. That could mean her manager, Lorenzo “Smoothvega” Zenteno, tells her she needs content for her TikTok and Instagram. It could be a day to relax and reset. Or she could be in album mode, which means completing at least a song each week.
“Whether it was going to be on the album or not, the goal was just to continuously work toward something,” says XBValentine.
She listens to beats sent to her by producers. She hums harmonies and idly freestyles, treating each song like a blank canvas as she settles into the cadence of the music.
While XBValentine has never been shy about her sexuality in her music, Forever And A Day presents a different side of her. She taps into traumatic moments in her life and is more candid about her mental health than she has ever been.
The first song she wrote for the album was the Westside Boogie-assisted “Luxury,” where she rap-sings over breezy, plucky guitar lines about painful lessons she learned while coming up: “twenty-four, would’ve been a summary / But luckily / I put my demons under me.”
“I really didn’t think I was gonna make it past age 24,” XBValentine says. “But [this song] is like a triumph. It’s me saying ‘I beat my demons’ basically. It’s so rewarding listening back, because that’s something I went through, and I’m no longer going through.”
On “Darkest Days,” XBValentine comes face-to-face with her demons and reclaims her power.
“Trying to find different ways to cope / While psychiatrists shoving these different pills down my throat / Didn’t want to be here / Did it for the ones that I love most / Fast forward 10 years / To my survival, I’m making a toast.”
“Darkest Days” is the album’s intro, a first step into a journey that will see her exploring her sexuality and mental health. She’s ready to be transparent, she says, pushing herself beyond the instinct to be protective and “reserved as far as the things I went through.”
XBValentine began laying the groundwork for her rise 10 years ago, waitressing by day and working on music at night. The album’s title was inspired by a conversation she had with her manager, who has helped her get to the point where she can focus on music full-time, by keeping her steadily booked with gigs and appearances.
“I was sitting in the car with Smooth, and I was like ‘Man, I feel like I’ve been doing this forever and a day,’” XBValentine says. “Then he’s like, ‘That’s the album title,’ and it just fit perfectly.”
She hopes to be someone young women look up to by showing them how “being vulnerable can work wonders for you.” It’s like when she stood on stage at Trees two years ago and played the first song she wrote after coming out. The audience roared with acceptance, giving her permission to finally be herself in her art.
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