Sudan Archives burst onto the scene in 2017 with “Come Meh Way,” back when she was a violinist and loop maker producing beats in her Ohio bedroom. Her 2019 debut album Athena drew inspiration from divine Black feminine power, and was followed in 2022 by her breakthrough second album Natural Brown Prom Queen. Natural Brown Prom Queen is an epic record that is also her most personal, taking in race, womanhood, and the fiercely loyal, loving relationships at the heart of Sudan’s life with her family, friends, and partner.

On Natural Brown Prom Queen Sudan is in character as Britt, the girl next door from Cincinnati who drives around the city with the top down and shows up to high school prom in a pink furry bikini with her thong hanging out her denim skirt. From first listen, it’s immediately apparent that Natural Brown Prom Queen is the artist’s most ambitious work to date with 18 tracks spanning from the disco-influenced R&B of “Home Maker” to Afrocentric anthem “Selfish Soul,” hip-hop banger “OMG Britt,” the wild ride of “NBPQ (Topless)”, and the ballad “Homesick (Gorgeous & Arrogant).”

Fittingly for an album named for a homecoming event, Natural Brown Prom Queen is all about home: both Sudan’s adopted hometown of L.A. and Cincinnati, where she was raised. It’s intimate in all senses of the word, with Sudan unafraid to be vulnerable, tender and open about her insecurities. But the record is also about finding pleasure – after all, this is the artist who played the violin upside-down on a pole in a music video. On Natural Brown Prom Queen, Sudan Archives invites you to join in and embrace shared joy.

Natural Brown Prom Queen was named an album of the year by Pitchfork, New York Times, The Guardian, The FADER, The Needle Drop, NPR, Vulture, Time Out, CNN, Slate, Paste, SPIN, Pop Matters, and many more; “Home Maker” was chosen by Barack Obama for his Favorite Songs of 2022; and Sudan Archives was handpicked by superstar Bad Bunny for Rolling Stone’s Future of Music 2022 issue.