NASA's Artemis II — the first crewed lunar mission since 1972 — completed its historic journey around the moon on Monday afternoon.
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During their return to Earth, the four-man crew aboard the $4 billion spacecraft also made history with their surprising wakeup song choice. NASA announced on social media that the Artemis II astronauts jammed out to award-winning rapper Denzel Curry, marking the first time hip-hop was streamed in outer space.
"As our Artemis II astronauts prepare to leave the lunar sphere of influence and return to Earth's gravitational pull, they listened to 'Tokyo Drifting' by Denzel Curry and Glass Animals, as their wakeup song," NASA also shared on X.
Amazingly, Denzel Curry's record is now the first hip-hop track played beyond Earth's atmosphere.
Ooh, now you're letting go ?
As our Artemis II astronauts prepare to leave the lunar sphere of influence and return to Earth's gravitational pull, they listened to "Tokyo Drifting," by Denzel Curry and Glass Animals, as their wakeup song. pic.twitter.com/1Xu6LN55nV
— NASA (@NASA)
Denzel Curry Reacts to NASA Recognition
Denzel Curry, who boasts 8 million monthly listeners on Spotify, responded to NASA's tweet to celebrate his intergalactic achievement.
"Even Aliens F*** with my S***! First Rapper Played in SPACE!" also said the Florida-born lyricist.
Denzel Curry reacts after NASA played his music as part of the Artemis II space mission.
Astronauts woke up to ?Tokyo Drifting? by Denzel Curry and Glass Animals as they prepared to leave the moon?s sphere of influence and return to Earth.
Denzel Curry, 31, is known best for his hit songs "Ultimate," "Walkin," "Lit Effect" and "SPEEDBOAT."
The song blasted in space by NASA's four-man crew, "Tokyo Drifting," released on Glass Animals' Dreamland album in 2020. On Spotify, the genre-bending record boasts over 165 million streams.
While this is his first venture with NASA, Denzel Curry has been a fan favorite in Hollywood. His music has appeared in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), Scream VI (2023), and Elvis (2022). He also contributed the song "Dynasties and Dystopia" to Netflix's hit series Arcane.
The Miami rapper entered the mainstream spotlight as part of the XXL Freshman Class in 2016. Since then, he has been among the most productive lyricists in the game.
Denzel Curry has released five solo studio albums and recently formed rap supergroup The Scythe. The hip-hop collective consists of A$AP Ferg, Bktherula, TiaCorine, and Key Nyata.
Throughout his career, Curry has performed at Rolling Loud, amassed millions of YouTube views, and partnered with Disney for a movie soundtrack. Now, the Miami rapper will be immortalized as the first rapper streamed in outer space.
