Lifted from her most recent EP ‘For The Uninformed’, rapper NICKI KNIGHTZ‘s visuals for 1964 (Howlett Drive) tells the tale of Nicki’s mother, a woman from Norwich who, after falling pregnant, found herself living in deepest Hackney.
The Saul Ali-directed video juxtaposes scenes of Nicki recording the track, and having to recall them visiting Norwich, with its canals and parks, a simpler life where survival is not so hard to maintain. She then smacks back to the grim reality of how her mother lost her financial independence and became despondent on the block.
At the forefront of the Scottish Rap scene, RANSOM FA has built a catalogue of outstanding music which thrust him into the centre of UK Rap, conversations with tastemakers and on to line ups with the UK’s most respected stars including Skepta, Mist and M Huncho. His remarkable lyricism and audible accent makes his music stand out from a competitive crowd, as demonstrated in his starring role in season 1 of the BBC’s ‘The Rap Game’ hosted by DJ Target, Krept & Konan and on recent single ‘Table’ which hit the BBC Radio 1Xtra playlist as BBC Introducing ‘Track of the Week’ and was also handpicked as Jack Saunders ‘Next Wave’ on BBC Radio 1.
Celebrating his wins and affirming his position as ‘Man of the Moment’, Ransom FA’s latest single, comes with production from PenHouse and breathes an air of bold, confident lyricism from the Scotsman.
Ransom FA’s sign out of 2020 is a well-deserved one. A passionate activist in using his platform to pass on opportunities for young Scottish artists, his achievements are a result of his motivation to become a notable black figure in the Scottish music industry and not only inspire but also help to pass on his knowledge. Having built his own studio ‘Ransom HQ’ in Aberdeen to give access to upcoming local musicians, Ransom FA has also completed his own TV show alongside Scunthorpe based rapper F.O.S. on BBC 3 – ‘The Rap Trip’ where the duo travelled the UK to discover and explore the burgeoning Rap communities emerging across Great Britain.
2020 has also seen a slew of releases across YouTube and digital platforms, collaborations, premieres with tastemaker sites Link Up and GRM Daily, support across national radio and celebrated entertainment sites, collaborations with Amazon to grace the pages of Notion magazine and has continued to build his upward spiralling fanbase of over 55,000 followers to go alongside the hundreds of thousands of YouTube views and streams that sit across his online repertoire.
Set to have a momentous 2021 that will continue to break through boundaries and elevate his work in music, TV and philanthropy, like Ransom FA is going to be the ‘Man of the Moment’ for the foreseeable future.
Be sure to check out his EP ‘Momentum’ dropping soon…for now, hit play
Rapper/singer, multi-hyphenate LYRIC JONES starts the year with a massive BANG with the John Benneche-directed music video for ‘Rock On’. The hard-hitting, Nottz-produced song is from Jones’s latest album ‘Closer Than They Appear’, which was released to critical acclaim in October of last year and made some notable year-end lists.
With about a decade-long career already under her belt, Lyric came onto the scene with debut album, ‘Jones St’, which features collaborations with the late Phife Dawg (of A Tribe Called Quest) and Esperanza Spalding.
Lyric has also collaborated and toured with her mentor Rah Digga, and shared stages with Pete Rock, Big Daddy Kane, Dilated Peoples, Robert Glasper and Avery Sunshine.
Check out Lyric’s slamming visuals for ‘Rock On’ below…
As we enter the New Year with unflappable optimism, Christian rapper MIKE BODY reminds us to spare a moment or two for the less fortune in his latest Andres Rodriguez-directed video for track, ‘Hope’.
Illustrator and experimental hip hop artist ASH SHAKUR‘s blissfully witty jam, ‘Anna’s Arcade’, takes you on a nostalgic trip down memory lane, via the arcade to play everyone’s favorite video games. Sonically, 8-bit game inspired sounds are woven into a boom bap beat produced by Masked Man, whilst Ash delivers playful bars based around his youth, unrequited love and his video games obsession. Listen out for lots of gamer references, as Ash uses video games as a metaphor for life’s obstacles, as he explains:
“The first verse explains a small part of the music game and how you have to watch out for those bowers! I wanted to draw parallels of life’s challenges to the levels on a video game”. The last verse highlights the theme of, how people play games ie: she’s playing hard to get – or he’s a player. I want Anna’s Arcade to be the place you think about having the most fun. Every time you listen, I want to bring you back to this feeling.”
The south Londoner is known for his leftfield take on hip hop, mixing witty storytelling with smooth melodies and catchy choruses his unorthodox style and flow has won fans across the globe. ‘Anna’s Arcade’ follows previous single Horror Flick’ which was supported by Adidas on Spotify and Indie Shuffle, whilst other tracks. ‘Lead The Way’ (released on Kitsuné Hot Stream), ‘Never Alone’, ‘Nokia’ and ‘Shine’ have courted wide spread media support from BBC 1Xtra, Noisey, Complex UK and Notion.
Ash is also the co-founder of Art Life Central, a collective that expresses creativity and freedom through music and fashion. He aims to inspire people through his vibrant visuals and incorporates this art direction across all of his musical content.
Check out Ash’s vibrant track below…may I take this opportunity to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas.
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