Molly Santana

Santana is of Japanese and African American ancestry and grew up in Fontana, California. When she was 11, she taught herself to play songs by My Chemical Romance and Pierce the Veil on acoustic guitar, later learning electric guitar and bass. She also attended punk shows at The Smell in Los Angeles.

Santana first gained online attention in 2019 through streetwear and fashion modeling content. She studied fashion in Japan before leaving her studies to pursue music full-time. She has explained that music was a constant presence in her family and that her interest in making it professionally developed during her mid-teens.

Santana recorded her first song in her car, using Apple headphones as a microphone. She released her debut single, "Y They Talk Abt Me?", in 2021, followed by the four-song EP Molly's World in October of that year. She released Neptune in 2022 and Mélange in 2023.

Her breakout single, "Chain Swangin", preceded the self-titled album Molly Santana, released in April 2024. Following the album's success, she signed with Victor Victor Worldwide in the summer of 2024. Her six-song EP Masonic Musik became her first release connected with Victor Victor Worldwide and Capitol Records, while Self-Titled Files collected outtakes from the album.

Santana released Molly and Her Week of Wonders in May 2025, with Che and Hardrock among its featured artists, and supported the album with a North American headlining tour. She also toured as a supporting act for Ski Mask the Slump God and opened for Don Toliver on his North American Hardstone Psycho Tour.

In 2026, Santana appeared alongside Drake and Future on "Ran to Atlanta", from Drake's album Iceman. The song reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100. Santana was also scheduled to tour with North West on the Molly x North Kimokawaii Tour, but the tour was later canceled.

Santana's music has been associated with trap, pop rap, and rage. Her sound combines punk, rage, trap, and alternative pop elements, while her presentation has been characterized by a baritone voice and grunge and punk-influenced aesthetics.

Her cited influences include ASAP Rocky, Bladee, Black Kray, Chief Keef, Ecco2k, Nettspend, Erykah Badu, Lil Uzi Vert, Playboi Carti, the Smashing Pumpkins, Tyler, the Creator, Young Thug, and Yung Lean. "Windows Up", released ahead of Masonic Musik, was included among The Fader's best rap songs of 2024.