Jamal Malachi is the deadname & stage name of New Orleans-born & based Hip-Hop artist Erica E. Also known as Erica Ether, she is a rapper from New Orleans’ lower 9th Ward and a co-founder of Cut+Sew Records & Ent., also based in New Orleans. Coming from a musical family, Erica has been rapping, writing & playing music since the age of 9. She began recording & producing in high school, releasing her first works with friends in 2010. Since then, she has released several free projects & singles online since the early 2010s.

Erica grew up rapping with family & friends until forming a group with fellow creatives while growing up in Louisiana. She was involved with several Hip-Hop collectives throughout the 2010s until founding her label with frequent collaborator & friend, producer/rapper JCKIEJEWLZ. She styled her rhyme patterns after those of her New Orleans predecessors, such as Soulja Slim, Jay Electronica, Curren$y, Mia X, Lil Wayne, B.G., and more. Other musical influences range from Hip-Hop to R&B, Trip-Hop, Alternative Rock, Indie, House, and more, with some of her biggest inspirations being Lupe Fiasco, Corinne Bailey Rae, Missy Elliot, Incubus, Portishead, SOPHIE & Janet Jackson.

Her music pairs complex, dense lyricism with ethereal, often atmospheric, experimental production that challenges the boundaries between genres. Her lyrics cover topics such as love, personal growth & development, systemic oppression & revolutionary action, as well as battle raps, songs to ride to, and songs to party to. Each record, each project is a new sound, a new flow, a new face.

In 2025, she released her first official project via her label, the 3-track EP, ‘…and it showed me 3 faces.’ After spending the year building an audience, she’s now focused on collaborating with other artists, creating her live show & preparing for the release of her full-length. The project is titled ‘In case I never make it…’ and was recorded before & completed during the first year of the pandemic. The lead single from the project is titled ‘Live From The Drive Thru’, and it features fellow Louisiana rapper $El Blaze$ and is set for release in May.