Hip hop and rap appear to be at a crossroads lately. The only-verse mumble rappers of the mid-to-late 2010s appear to be falling off, and the style has break up into two camps: the graceful, stylized verse barons like Jack Harlow who name again to the golden age of rap a’la Snoop Dogg, and the super-fast Mac Miller followers like Megan Thee Stallion who’re articulate and exact however with rather less swag. A choose few rappers can do each; Nana Bangz is one among them.
With a totally late 90s aesthetic and channeling Lil’ Kim vitality on steroids, Nana’s verses are about as tight as they arrive and her freestyle recreation matches her enormous efficiency persona. Together with her first singles out in 2018, it appears Nana got here out of the gate swinging, with a well-developed type and a capability to wind her verses across the beat with a proficiency that takes many artists a long time. From her intro brag observe referred to as “Present Me Love” setting a formidable baseline, issues solely bought higher from there as Nana proceed to hone her craft. From 2021’s “Free Britney” by the 15 or so tracks she’s launched in 2022 and 2023, Nana continued to showcase her numerous type and mastery of the mic.
Nana’s first observe of 2024 is “Alive,” one other instance of her means to change kinds and create all varieties of verse, even inside one observe. Channeling the aggression of Woman of Rage with the social gathering acumen and dusky vocal timbre or Cunning Brown, “Alive” sees Nana switching from clean verse type to offended and heavy to whip-fast lyrics all within the area of a few minute. On high of that, the manufacturing for “Alive” is sort of totally different, with a classical string pattern floating over the beat as one among Nana’s most aggressive lyrical assaults to-date bangs out round it. It’s clear the distinction is in objective, with the juxtaposition of the melodic music serving to focus on the heaviness of the verse.
Together with her strong vocals, vocabulary and verse, it appears solely a matter of time earlier than Nana Bangz is found for the expertise she is, however that doesn’t appear to matter to the born pure rapper. A musician to the core, one of the compelling arguments for her love of hip hop and dedication to her craft is in a video from final 12 months of her avenue efficiency in New Orleans. Together with her music movies being so stylized, this efficiency video with nothing greater than a drummer for backing exhibits not solely Nana’s superb efficiency expertise however her real love for the verse. Anybody with that mush ardour and expertise is a star wherever they go.
“Alive” is out now and will be streamed on Spotify. Try the video for her latest observe, “Yay, Power!” on Nana Bang’z’s YouTube channel.
