Tia Corine Thompson Shults, known professionally as TiaCorine, is an American rapper and songwriter from

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...

. She is best known for her singles "Lotto" and "FreakyT".

Early life

Tia Shults was born in

to a

Shoshone The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ) are a Native American tribe with four large cultural/linguistic divisions: * Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming * Northern Shoshone: southern Idaho * Western Shoshone: Nevada, northern Utah * Goshute: western Utah, easter ...

mother and a Japanese-

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

father. In the fourth grade, Shults began performing at local talent shows and started taking

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

and

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

lessons. She attended

Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) is a historically black public university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina. History Winston-Salem State University was founded as Slater Industrial Academy o ...

and graduated with a degree in

exercise physiology Exercise physiology is the physiology of physical exercise. It is one of the allied health professions, and involves the study of the acute responses and chronic adaptations to exercise. Exercise physiologists are the highest qualified exercise ...

, originally planning to become a

physician assistant A physician assistant or physician associate (PA) is a type of Mid-level practitioner, mid-level health care provider. In North America PAs may diagnose illnesses, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and may serve as a pri ...

. While in college, she worked as a shift manager at Bojangles.

Career

2017–2021: ''34Corine''

In 2017, she released her first major single, "Cabbage" with OG Spliff. In late 2019, she signed to the South Coast Music Group record label. On September 4, 2020, she released her debut EP, ''34Corine''. The album featured the song "Lotto", which received significant traction on

TikTok TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes. TikTok is an international version ...

. On May 14, 2021, she released a follow-up to ''34Corine'' titled ''The Saga of 34Corine'', featuring guest appearances from Kenny Beats, DaBaby, and Frais006. On November 27, 2021, she released her second EP, ''Pussy''.

2022–present: ''I Can't Wait''

On September 9, 2022, she released her debut album, ''I Can't Wait'', featuring guest appearances from

UnoTheActivist Troy Vashon Donte Lane (born April 13, 1996), known professionally as UnoTheActivist (also known as The Act) is an American rapper and songwriter from Atlanta, Georgia. He is most well known for his songs, "What," "Giuseppe Swag," and "Parkin' Lo ...

, Kenny Beats, and

Tony Shhnow Carrington Jaylen Andrew Wilson (born December 27, 1995), known professionally as Tony Shhnow, is an American rapper and songwriter from Atlanta, Georgia. He is recognized as a pioneer of the plugg subgenre of trap music and as a veteran of t ...

. The album featured the song "FreakyT", which received significant traction on

. She joined

Key Glock Markeyvius LaShun Cathey (born August 3, 1997), better known by his stage name Key Glock, is an American rapper and songwriter from Memphis, Tennessee. A protégé of Young Dolph, he rose to fame in 2017 with his mixtape ''Glock Season''. He is s ...

on his '' Glockoma Tour'' from March to April 2023. On April 21, 2023, she released a remix to "FreakyT" featuring rapper Latto. In June 2023, she was announced as member of the 2023 XXL Freshmen Class. TiaCorine Performing in Brooklyn

On February 2, 2024, TiaCorine released her fourth EP, ''Almost There'', under South Coast Music Group and

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mus ...

with guest appearances from

, Luh Tyler, and Zelooperz. She performed at her first headlining tour, the ''Almost There Tour'', in March 2024. She featured on the

Denzel Curry Denzel Rae Don Curry (born February 16, 1995) is an American rapper and singer. Born and raised in Carol City, Florida, Curry started rapping while in the sixth grade and began working on his first mixtape in 2011. Influenced by underground Flor ...

single "

Hot One Hot One is a rock band formed in 2005. Its members are guitarist/vocalist Nathan Larson, bassist/vocalist Emm Gryner, drummer Kevin March, and guitarist Jordan Kern. The band is characterized by a glam rock/post-punk sound and overtly political lyr ...

" alongside

ASAP Ferg Darold Durard Brown Ferguson Jr. (born October 20, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Ferg (stylized as A$AP Ferg), is an American rapper from New York City's Harlem neighborhood. Aside from his solo career, he is a member of the hip hop collec ...

in June 2024.

Artistry

TiaCorine has stated that the music her parents played to her as a child are a major influence on her, including artists such as

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

, Teena Marie,

Sade Sade may refer to: People * Marquis de Sade (1740–1814), French aristocrat, writer, and libertine * Sade (singer) (born 1959, Helen Folasade Adu), British Nigerian musician and lead singer of the eponymous band * Sade Baderinwa (born 1969), WAB ...

, Sugarhill Gang,

A Tribe Called Quest A Tribe Called Quest was an American hip hop group formed in Queens, New York City, in 1985,Q-Tip

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

Aaliyah Aaliyah Dana Haughton (; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer and actress. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and " ...

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

The Notorious B.I.G. Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

, and Ginuwine. She has described her music style as "anime trap."

Personal life

Shults has a daughter, born in 2016. She is a fan of

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

; her favorite shows include '' Hunter x Hunter'', ''

Inuyasha is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. It was serialized in Shogakukan's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Sunday'' from November 1996 to June 2008, with its chapters collected in fifty-six '' ...

'', ''

Pokémon (an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise. In terms of ...

'', and ''

Sailor Moon is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. It was originally serialized in Kodansha's ''shōjo'' manga magazine ''Nakayoshi'' from 1991 to 1997; the 52 individual chapters were published in 18 volumes. The seri ...

''. She is a fan of

streetwear Streetwear is a style of casual clothing which became global in the 1990s. It grew from New York hip hop fashion and Californian surf culture to encompass elements of sportswear, punk, skateboarding and Japanese street fashion. Eventually hau ...

fashion, and is known to wear a diamond chain necklace of

Kirby Kirby may refer to: Buildings * Kirby Building, a skyscraper in Dallas, Texas, United States * Kirby Hall, an Elizabethan country house near Corby, Northamptonshire, England * Kirby House (disambiguation), various houses in England and the Unit ...

. In September 2023, she had vocal cord surgery and was unable to speak for two months.

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

References

{{reflist Living people 21st-century American rappers Musicians from North Carolina Winston-Salem State University alumni Rappers from North Carolina 21st-century American women rappers African-American women rappers African-American women singer-songwriters American women singer-songwriters American women hip hop singers Musicians from Winston-Salem, North Carolina Southern hip hop musicians Year of birth missing (living people) American rappers of Asian descent American people of Japanese descent Native American rappers American people of Shoshone descent