Artist Profile: Alfred.
For the Virginia-born and raised rapper and illustrator Raan Brown, the moniker Alfred. has long represented a crystallization of a distinct part of their personality, taking the maximalist aspects of their persona to certain extremes while maintaining a centrality of flow and cadence that is indicative of their mastery over their craft. Now, with the release of their latest project, ELF., in the rearview mirror, Alfred. has come to a crossroads: one that could compel them to reinvent the artistic identity that for so long has served as a unique and grandiose creative outlet.
From the time they were a child, Raan has been involved in music in some way. Growing up with what they describe, in many ways, as a “tiger mom”, they were ushered into violin and piano lessons, dance classes, church choirs, and everything in between.
Those experiences, in spite of some of the residual pressure they may have laid on Raan, left them with a strong passion for the arts and a deep willingness to pursue them.
Although Raan grew up playing music, their exposure to mainstream artists was largely limited to religious music; Christian rock, rap, and pop dominated their household. The first time they heard hip-hop in a secular context, in fact, was when their uncle immigrated from the Philippines, buying an iPod Touch and asking Raan to help him import tracks by the Black Eyed Peas onto the device.
Raan quickly became obsessed with their and other hip-hop artists’ penchant for a measured ridiculousness, and as they gained access to music through the Internet, this passion only grew.
“I think all rap has a braggadociousness to it, but I definitely feel like there are certain rappers who are just so bombastic, so ridiculous, so maximalist. I just love it.”
Therefore, when Raan became a teenager and lost some of their child-like vocal range, a transition into rap felt very natural.
Yet according to Raan, those first four or five years of pursuing rap as an art form were characterized by a healthy dose of trial and error. Their earliest tracks and releases from those days are largely nowhere to be found online, and Raan’s work, in its earliest form, embodied a fast-rapping, lyrically dense persona that contrasts in depth and versatility to what is available now through Alfred.
From among their earlier projects, Like You!!, therefore not only represents the years of growth that Alfred. underwent before making its first true artistic appearance, but it is also marked by a level of vulnerability that is unmatched by anything else in their catalogue.
Along with that vulnerability, however, the project carries budding signs of that grandiose personality that has become so indicative of Alfred.: a distinct refusal to take society or relationships at face value and a willingness to say whatever is necessary to convey that.
The difference between 2019’s Like You!! and 2025’s ELF. is stark as far as the growth and lyrical ability of the artist are concerned. When the two projects are compared in terms of the development of the Alfred. persona, however, the connection becomes more clear. ELF. features a distinctly more jaded, more unafraid, and more inaccessible version of that voice.
The change between the two projects, according to Raan, is indicative of what Alfred. has always been for them: an opportunity to express a confined portion of their identity in maximalist terms.
“My journey with Alfred has kind of felt like a little Mecha Suit I put on. I get to see myself in this way that I just never thought I was, getting to say all the things that I might have wanted to say but couldn't… Even now, as an adult, there are many situations where, because of how I use my words, I can navigate my life a certain way.”
Now that ELF. has been released, Raan certainly sees Alfred. continuing as a project. On a practical level, they feel that their lyrical abilities are the best they’ve ever been, and they hope to utilize more of their singing voice in the future.
The direction that Alfred. will take is uncertain, but Raan’s growth since the inception of Alfred. promises that it will, at the very least, be highly intriguing.
“Let's say that I don't want to leave the party yet, but at some point, I'm going to walk out of the party and go to the beach, figuratively speaking. I'll be a little bit more scenic and poetic and heartfelt. But also, I don't know. You didn't get the best of me [yet]. I still have things to say.”
Their newest single, “Phlegm”, was released on all streaming platforms on Wednesday, Feb. 4.
