Audrey Godoy, the 28-year-old MC better known as Gavlyn, got her first break when her video for the boom-bap banger “What I Do” grabbed attention in 2012. Four albums (and millions of plays) later, she’s managed to organically build a substantial core audience and consistently tour across the U.S. and Europe.
While viral success has pushed her toward notoriety, her hype has been sustainable. Her latest project, Headspace, has the potential to be her most significant release to date.
“It’s just classic, boom bap, quality rap music,” she told HipHopDX.
The LP is a collaborative effort with producer DJ Hoppa, the CEO of her label — Broken Complex. Hoppa — who was previously signed to Hopsin’s now-defunct Funk Volume imprint — first met Gavlyn in a cypher at a house party over a decade ago. As fate would have it, the party took place in the same house where they now record.
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“We released our last project Why Wait during crunch time,” she said, discussing their album from 2016. “This round, we wanted to take our time. We dropped singles and videos as we went, allowing the fans to gravitate towards songs throughout the process.”
As Gavlyn detailed, there has been a massive shift in her approach throughout her career.
“During my first four albums, I had the mentality of finishing the album before letting people have it,” she noted. “I never really had fan feedback throughout the process.”
Part of her appeal is the very same thing that has kept her bubbling just under the radar of the mainstream thus far: her dedication to a golden era aesthetic.
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“My demographic has changed so much since I first dropped,” she said. “I mainly make boom bap though. So when I added 808s and switched up the high hats, people freaked out.”
Overall, she’s happy her fans have allowed her to grow as an artist while remaining incredibly loyal. They’ve adapted well to her stylistic shifts, though she’s not suddenly going to be competing with the likes of Nicki Minaj and Cardi B.
“I’m kind of like a female Joey Bada$$,” she said when discussing some of the game’s current go-to female spitters. “I respect all the female artists out, but I’m more of a Jean Grae fan. It’s a different mind state … I’m more boyish than most female rappers.”
Gavlyn differentiates herself from the chart-topping acts in her approach.
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“It’s a different story,” she explained. “We’re not all female pimps … not all females are that confident. Some women just want to embrace the woman they are. I feel like I have a responsibility to show people that they can be themselves. I want to put my landmark on Hip Hop, but I [ultimately] want to put that into people’s heads.”
Her new album, Headspace, is available now and can be streamed below.
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