PlaqueBoyMax Crowns Matt Proxy The First Rising Star — $25,000 And Red Bull Studio Access
The streamer era just produced its own star-maker moment.
PlaqueBoyMax closed out his first-ever RISING STAR competition on Sunday night (November 8) at The Belasco in downtown Los Angeles, and when the night ended, Minneapolis rapper Matt Proxy was the one holding the oversized check — $25,000, plus access to Red Bull Music Studios in Los Angeles.
This was not a one-night talent show. Red Bull partnered with Max on a three-day competition that put six emerging artists in a shared house and ran them through the kind of weekend the industry usually keeps behind closed doors: a real label meeting, a Cipher Challenge where they had to write and perform a song in 90 minutes, and a timed styling assignment at Wasteland. The whole run streamed live on Max’s Twitch and YouTube channels.
The six artists chasing the crown: Matt Proxy, Tana, Hawsa, Earfzilla, BooHavinn and Raud.
And the room was not short on star power. A celebrity panel — Wiz Khalifa, Lil Yachty, Coi Leray, Cuffem and Ski Mask The Slump God — offered critiques through the weekend, and on the final day, Stunna Girl and Silky joined Ski Mask to help determine the winner.
The fans had a real say too. Voting ran all weekend at pbmrisingstar.com, and it was tight: Tana entered the final day leading the board with 13 stars, Matt Proxy right behind him at 12. Both rappers led the voting again after the finale performances, so Max put it to the room before he made the call — and the call was Matt Proxy.
He did not come out of nowhere, either. Matt Proxy arrived in Los Angeles with a career already moving: his June project trojan horse featured Current Joys and fakemink, blends live instrumentation with the hip-hop he grew up on in Minneapolis, and he had already played a headline show in New York. At the finale, in the middle of the biggest night of his career, he asked the audience to sit down for a tribute to his late sister.
Max built Rising Star to give back. Announcing the competition, he said it plain: “My community gave me a chance and helped me get to where I am today. Now I want to do the same for somebody else.” The weekend backs that up — and it lands while his own music work is getting recognized beyond his channel: he is nominated for Best Music Streamer at the 2026 Streamer Awards.
One weekend, one check, one set of studio keys. That is how you turn a platform into a pipeline.
So let’s talk about it — did PlaqueBoyMax get it right? Was Matt Proxy the clear winner, or did Tana’s 13 stars mean the crown belonged to him? Drop your take in the comments.
Sources: AllHipHop and Hollywood Unlocked reporting on the Rising Star finale (November 11, 2026); the competition streamed live on PlaqueBoyMax’s Twitch and YouTube channels.
