The story

Two brothers. One empire.

Not a duo. A movement.

TNL is the Michigan brother duo of KING T and LUSS, out of Battle Creek and Detroit, making dark, maximal pop with hip-hop bones. Their records deal in real life: mental health, substance abuse, social inequality, and two brothers building something from nothing while keeping ownership of every note.

They broke through in 2022 with the single “KING KONG” and the album We Own The Night, which reached #84 on the iTunes Top 200 hip-hop chart. Since then they’ve electrified festival stages including the High Times Cannabis Cup, Motor City Roots Fest and Cannabash, and headlined Spark in the Park in Ypsilanti.

They run it themselves. Somebody Records, the label and management company they founded in 2021, is led by KING T as CEO and LUSS as COO, with worldwide distribution through Roc Nation Distribution since 2024. Mentored by Detroit icon Trick Trick, who directed LUSS’s “WHAT’S UP” and KING T’s “VULTURES,” TNL are BMI-affiliated songwriters, and the next TNL album is in the works.

Hand-numbered vinyl runs of We Own The Night and American Ultra sold out on Diggers Factory. On stage they’ve shared bills with Trick Trick, Method Man & Redman, Jeezy, Babyface Ray, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, B-Real, Too $hort, Ying Yang Twins, Busta Rhymes, Ca$his, Berner, The Luniz and Rick Ross.

Listen nowWatchPress Kit (PDF)

KING T and LUSS on stage side by side

Timeline

  1. On the road

    Toured California with former Shady/Interscope artist Ca$his.

  2. Dead Roses

    TNL album.

  3. High Times Cannabis Cup

    Headlined in Clio, MI, in front of a sold-out, record-setting crowd. Radio on Shade 45 / The Fly Zone Radio with Trick Trick.

  4. No Apologies

    14 tracks, with two Ca$his collaborations and production from Statik Selektah, Mark Batson, Carlos “6 July” Broady, AraabMuzik and more.

  5. Somebody Records

    The brothers found their own label and management company: KING T as CEO, LUSS as COO.

  6. We Own The Night

    Featuring Bobby Creekwater, Ca$his and Cheri Dennis. Reached #84 on the iTunes Top 200 hip-hop chart. Videos for KING KONG, MONSTER and LINE ’EM UP, dir. Mino Shot Dat.

  7. Festival run

    Headlined Cannabash, GOATS of Cannabis and Saturnalia.

  8. American Ultra

    12-track album. “A sonic explosion that commands attention from start to finish.” — DetroitRap.com

  9. Spark in the Park & Motor City Roots

    Headlined Spark in the Park in Ypsilanti alongside B-Real, Method Man & Redman, Trick Trick and Ying Yang Twins, plus Motor City Roots.

  10. Roc Nation Distribution

    Worldwide distribution through Roc Nation Distribution begins. LUSS drops the WHAT’S UP video, dir. Trick Trick.

  11. VULTURES

    KING T’s VULTURES video, dir. Trick Trick.

  12. VoyageMichigan

    “Rising Stars: Meet TNL (KING T & LUSS)”.

  13. El Lussè

    LUSS solo album.

  14. Tiny Desk x Headspace

    Session in Ann Arbor.

  15. CanvasRebel

    Interview feature.

  16. ANTI-NICE SUPERSTAR (CHAPTER 1)

    KING T solo album.

  17. New TNL album

    In the works.

Press

“This 12-track opus solidifies TNL’s status as pioneers of the genre, fearlessly pushing the boundaries of what hip-hop can achieve.”— DetroitRap.com, June 21, 2023

As seen in Dubcnn · DetroitRap.com · UndergroundHipHopBlog · CanvasRebel · Siccness · VoyageMichigan · Shade 45

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