Cardi B's Journey From the "Money" Video to 'Am I the Drama?'
Cardi B's bold allure has always demanded attention, and from "Money" to 'Am I the Drama,' she's not letting up.
Screenshot from "Money" by Cardi B.
Editor's Note: This story was originally published in December 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.
Cardi B’s “Money” video was a raw, fashion-forward flex that marked a turning point in her visual evolution. Now, with her second studio album Am I the Drama? arriving Friday, the themes she first explored in “Money” — power, style, and full-throttle energy are finding new life.
The Jora Frantzis-directed "Money" video was a guiltless amalgamation of Cardi's relentlessly realer-than-thou trappings. There's gold-plated money guns, a diamond-encrusted wardrobe, old rich white folks gawking at the cavalcade of strippers performing death-defying acrobatics, a ton of skin, and even an appearance from her infant daughter, Kulture, breastfeeding in a few posh frames.
Check out the dates for Cardi B's first headlining arena tour following the release of her new album, 'Am I the Drama?.'
The video arrived on the heels of a historic 2018 for the Bronx rapper, wracking up five Grammy nominations for her debut album Invasion of Privacy and closing out the year as the first female artist with not one or two, but three, No.1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. So if there was any doubt as to whether Cardi could keep up the heat-streak, those are about as good as gone at this point.
Heading into Am I the Drama?, her career has continued to soar since "Money." "Bodack Yellow" became the first song by a female rapper to earn diamond certifications in the U.S., and since then she's picked up two other diamond certifications with "Girls Like You" with Maroon 5 and "I Like It" with Bad Bunny and J Balvin. This year, she was honored with the ASCAP Voice of the Culture Award, recognizing her significant influences on music and culture.
