Lyrically, Lexie Liu’s debut album, 2029, is a time capsule—a message from the 19-year-old singer/rapper to herself 10 years from now. And she has some stories to tell. At 18, she performed at SXSW in Austin, Texas; her music documentary has more than 30 million views; and she was a semi-finalist on the second season of The Rap of China. Lexie embodies a strong female voice in China’s largely male-dominated hip-hop scene—listen to single “Mulan” as proof—and her sound spans R&B, pop and electronic. Most importantly, she hopes her personal message inspires more young people to express themselves—and create their own futures.