Blueface boasts one of the most distinctive flows in 2020s rap: Dripping slurred syllables over crisp trap beats, he drifts woozily over the groove, as though unwilling to be restrained by anything as basic as timekeeping. Such defiance is perfectly in character for the L.A. rapper, born Johnathan Michael Porter in 1997. Since he broke out with 2018’s “Dead Locs”, Blueface has become famous for his independent streak. Porter didn’t set out to become a famous rapper: The starting quarterback on his high school football team later played for Fayetteville State University before dropping out. Back in L.A., he found himself in his friend TeeCee4800’s studio, where the producer dared him to drop a verse. It turned out that Blueface had the winning combination: an original voice, an ear for memorable quips (“Stylin’ without a stylist”), and a striking look, thanks to the Benjamin Franklin tattoo on his face. From his unique tattoo came his alias—a reference to the blue strip embedded in $100 bills. After building a local fanbase, making quick-to-go-viral appearances outside local high schools, he scored his first hit with “Thotiana”, the sullen strip-club anthem that anchored his 2018 debut album, <I>Famous Cryp</I>. He then signed to Cash Money Records for 2020’s <I>Find the Beat</I>, where he celebrated his success, pushed his West Coast funk stylings and leaned into his unusual voice. The title’s not ironic; it’s a challenge to listeners who try to box him in. “I rap offbeat,” he told Apple Music. “I don’t follow the guidelines.”