Why Netflix’s ‘Rhythm + Flow’ is huge for hip-hop, and Cardi B is the new Simon Cowell

Like many viewers during the height of “American Idol” fever over a decade ago, Cardi B was glued to the TV, imagining what kind of judge she would be if tasked with critiquing aspiring performers. Now, ahead of her anticipated sophomore record, Cardi, 26, is trying her hand at reality television judging alongside Chance the Rapper and Tip “T.I.” Harris on Netflix’s first foray into music-based competition shows, “Rhythm + Flow.” “A lot of people wonder how was I going to judge a competition, because I’m so new,” Cardi says, “but I know a hit record when I hear one.” Her debut album, “Invasion of Privacy,” won in the rap category at the 2019 Grammy Awards and is still No. “This was my chance to put my mark on and see it through the way I would want to see one of these shows go.” While the heyday of music-based competitions peaked in the pre-streaming, “You’re a little pitchy, dawg” aughts, network television still boasts weekly talent shows like the relaunched “American Idol” and “The Voice,” now in its 17th season, while regularly springing new variations and gimmicks, some successful, most less so. “Music competition series have been one of the most popular and beloved types of unscripted TV, but there has never been a competition show of this scale that has been focused on hip-hop before ‘Rhythm + Flow,’” said Brandon Riegg, Netflix’s vice president of nonfiction series. “We saw an opportunity to show fans an authentic look at the level of talent it takes to become Cardi B, Chance the Rapper and T.I.” In the nearly two decades since a bubbly cocktail waitress from Texas named Kelly Clarkson helped “American Idol” innovate the modern music competition show, viewers have tuned into countless series looking for pop stars, country artists, guitar gods, a cappella vocalists, gospel singers, songwriters, producers and virtually every aspect of contemporary music-making.