There was a time when people thought Rico Nasty was “crazy, too out of the box.” Her punk rock aesthetic may have initially confused a few rap fans, but that individuality is what has propelled her into the spotlight and advanced her career beyond measure. She addresses some of the talk on “You Could Never,” a new song produced by Rayman and Imad Royal, appearing on her forthcoming album, Lethal, out May 16. The 27-year-old Largo, Md. native’s new project reflects the growth and elevation she’s experienced while delivering her sublime bars over the last decade. Rico connects with XXL to discuss what’s to come with her latest release as well as her first foray into acting.
Lethal is some of Rico Nasty’s best work to date. It’s fun and confident while getting a lot off her mind. Rico’s best therapy seems to be when she touches the booth. Across 15 songs, she delivers a mix of hard and soft moods for various occasions. She’s already dropped the rock hop banger “Teethsucker (Yea3x)” and sugary sweet “On The Low.” The dopamine hits come quickly with this collection. There’s rapping, singing, the rock energy that’s become synonymous with her sound and some pop feels in there.
Rico did try a bit of alternative therapy when creating this project, which is captured in the cover art, photographed by director Devin Desouza. The rapper’s alluring face is decorated with acupuncture needles as she gazes into the sky above. The connection between the album title and the Chinese medicine technique symbolizes taking risks.
“There’s always kinda been an underlying story to my favorite projects,” she tells XXL. “I guess Anger Management was me, per se, controlling my anger or whatever, and realizing that I even have anger issues and that’s why it comes out in the music. And this album was more so being free to just do, and I think that can be very scary, because you don’t know what the other side looks like.”
This era of Rico Nasty marks diving into the unknown without fear, which is what she did for the Lethal recording process following her last album, Las Ruinas, in 2022. “And I feel like that’s kinda what acupuncture was for me,” Rico shares. “First time I ever did it I was like, Hell no. I don’t want to do that. Like why would I want to put the needles in my body? How is that therapeutic? Obviously, I had to get them actually done for the cover. So, I don’t know, it wound up being a very relaxing, easy experience. And I kinda just felt like that is life, and that was making this album. It was super scary at first, found my footing and found what I wanted to say, but once I said it, there was nothing to be afraid of.”
“Crash” is a shining example of Rico’s renewed creative freedom. The upbeat, guitar-licked gem is exactly what you’d hear setting the scene between two lovers in a romantic drama film. It’s still got the rock flavor Rico’s known for, but this time, her singing is full of feel-good energy. Devin Desouza will also be directing the upcoming music video for the track while Rico gets to showcase more of her acting chops.
“That’s one of the records I was scared of doing because I’m known for doing the records like ‘Smoke Break’ and ‘Son of a Gun’ [two raging rock tracks on Lethal],” Rico expresses. “It just took a little bit of courage to trust myself. But I’m loving the reaction. You guys have a video for that one too coming soon. I’m actually going to New York to shoot it. I’m so excited to shoot this music video because it’s not a lot of performance happening; it’s more so acting and really feeling the emotions the song is trying to portray.”
Acting has become a priority for Rico over the last year. While she’s adopted different personas like Trap Lavigne from her Sugar Trap days, and her music videos have given her the opportunity to get into character, now she’s officially a working actress. Rico will costar in the new series Margo’s Got Money Troubles, set to debut on Apple TV+ in 2026. The show, based on the novel of the same name by Rufi Thorpe, stars Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfieffer, Nicole Kidman, Nick Offerman and Lindsey Normington, among others.
Rico takes on the role of a roommate who lives with Margo, played by Fanning. Margo gets pregnant during an affair with her college professor and she turns to OnlyFans to make ends meet as a single mom. When her estranged father, a former wrestler, shows up to move in with her, they make a deal that he’ll help with childcare. Then Margo starts applying some of her father’s advice from the world of wrestling to her OnlyFans account.
“I couldn’t be more honored to be on a film with Elle [Fanning] and also my costar Lindsey [Normington],” Rico says. “[Lindsey] is the sweetest and has honestly made everything more easy. We did a casting together, the auditions, so going into the first day, she was already like my homie. We done hella rehearsals together… It’s been really awesome. I feel very blessed.”
In preparing for this new aspect of her career, Rico resonated with the main character in the book because she also had a child early on, and there were many parallels with how the rapper came up in the music industry navigating that experience with her own 10-year-old son, Cameron. One thing that’s been a little different for Rico on set of Margo’s Got Money Troubles is keeping her life as a rapper at the door. “They don’t treat me like an artist,” she reveals. “You’re a rookie here. This is a new world and people are fans of you and they respect what you do in your world, but this is another world. I like that.”
There’s never really a time when Rico Nasty leaves her rap life entirely at the door though, because it’s innately part of who she is. It’s in her blood, literally. Her father is a rapper named Beware who’s actively spitting bars. The grunge and glamour that her fans have become accustomed to would not exist without hip-hop and the genre that sparked her passion for rapping.
“Rap is what made me fall in love with music,” she conveys. “I didn’t fall in love with art, per se. I fell in love with rap music. I fell in love with the art of metaphors. I fell in love with beats, I fell in love with the culture, I fell in love with what it means for people. I fell in love with hip-hop and therefore I’m a rapper. I’m a product of that. And regardless if my music takes a pop direction or a rock direction or I actually start acting, whatever the case may be, I feel like at my core, in what you hear, my metaphors will still resemble somewhat of a rap song.”
And don’t get it twisted. Her new label home at Fueled by Ramen, historically known for launching the careers of alternative bands like Fallout Boy and Panic! at the Disco, doesn’t take away from her rap roots. Rico hasn’t forgotten where she comes from and encourages rappers to do the same as they reach new heights in their careers.
“I’m always gonna be a rapper at heart,” Rico maintains. “And I feel it does a disservice to rap music when people say, ‘Once I get to this part, I’m not a rapper. Once I get to this sh*t, I’m not a rapper, ni**a, I’m an artist.’ But you’re a rapper and you rap very well. You rap so well that you’re up against people that don’t even make rap music. Own it. Own what made you who you are. And you can still do other things. And just because I call myself a rapper doesn’t mean I don’t have a screamo track on my album or a pop record on my album. Music is not meant to define you. I think certain labels are for to show where you come from and I come from hip-hop.”
Take a look as Rico Nasty opens up about her new album, acting, advice for rappers on how to care for their vocal health, the exciting time for women in rap, upcoming tour and more below.