NME’s latest star of The Cover, Moliy, has created an exclusive playlist to accompany the story’s launch – check it out below.
The Ghanaian-American star is on this week’s (May 11) edition of The Cover, a manifestation of NME’s commitment to supporting emerging talent across the globe on a weekly basis. Every week, a rising artist will feature on The Cover – you can read Moliy’s profile here, written by Kyann-Sian Williams and featuring photography by Nirah Sanghani.
Alongside her The Cover story, Moliy has curated an exclusive playlist that’ll get you ready for the summer. The aptly titled ‘Summer Body’ includes songs by Cardi B, Coi Leray, Ice Spice, Latto, SAILORR, Sasha Keable and more. Listen to the full playlist on Spotify below and on Apple Music.
Moliy released her debut EP ‘Wondergirl’ in 2020. She’d made the project with MikeMillzOn’Em, who had opened up his studio for her for free. She got a few playlist placements through cold emails and sheer willpower, but remained “in this weird limbo”. Moliy even flew to Orlando, Florida, in pursuit of a business degree and the American Dream, holding down a nine-to-five in Victoria’s Secret. But music was the only thing she “wouldn’t want to give up on”: “Like, if I died today, what am I going to be known for?”
The viral hit ‘Sad Girlz Luv Money’ was born from that exact mix of persistence and audacity. Moliy had been sliding into Amaarae’s DMs for months because she loved what she was doing and could already hear how their voices might work together, so it was cosmic when the former NME Cover star finally sent over two beats for Moliy to write to. The night before their session, Moliy argued with her older sister, who was supporting her financially, and carried that frustration straight into the song. “I was so pissed,” she laughs, recalling her feelings then: “‘Bitch, I’m going to get money too. I’m going to be good too. This is just a temporary situation.’
“I was just tired of being dependent on my older siblings, and I wanted to be able to take care of myself, so it was like a manifestation song for me,” she continues. And in her bones, she knew it was “going to change her life”. ‘Sad Girlz Luv Money’ went global in 2021, powered by TikTok and the kind of chorus that proved impossible to ignore, but the success wasn’t straightforward. “As much as something can be blowing up online, my personal life at that point was kind of shitty,” she says plainly. “I was broke. I wasn’t getting booked.”
Read Moliy’s full Cover story here and find out who else has been on The Cover here.
Every year, NME produces 50 Cover stories, showcasing the future of music via in-depth profiles and exclusive photoshoots. Check out our coffee table book NME The Cover 2024-2025, which features the likes of Kneecap, Lola Young, Amaarae, LE SSERAFIM, Oklou and many more.