After asserting that we ought pay closer attention to women making music in my last post, I have decided to lead by example. Each day of this month, I aim to discover a new artist, and share my discoveries with you all. Some of these acts some of you will already be familiar with, some might be as new to you as they are to me, but the point of this challenge is to broaden my horizon, and hopefully documenting that through this post will encourage you all to do the same!
Please drop a comment or hit me on socials, if you'd like to put me on to someone special to you.
Enjoy the read and the good music!
BIA - 02.03.2020
We are definitely seeing an increase in visibility of women in the rap game, and although this change seems like a fresh occurrence, as early as 2015 shows such as Oxygen's Sisterhood of Hip Hop were putting in the work to propel women in hip hop – such as BIA – into the mainstream domain.
From her early single, "Whip It" to her debut EP, NICE GIRLS FINISH LAST: CUIDADO, BIA's discog satisfies all my trap cravings, whilst also mingling in her wide-ranging inspirations, which she attributes to her multinational roots. Her latest, "Bo$$Day" combines techno flexes with her typical self-affirmative rap bars. Assuring us that "every day a boss day" and that she "never takes a loss", BIA encourages her listeners to catch that W all day everyday – this is my new alarm tune.
Minus the Kodak Black feature, discovering BIA has been an excellent start to the month's challenge. Bump my current no.1, "SUPABIEN"
Deena Ade - 03.03.2020
Given how often I see her name (we (BRAg) actually follow her on Instagram), it came as a great surprise to me that I never actually registered that the Feminist Activist whom I began following in light of her documentary of the #SlutWalkLagos, Deena Ade, is in fact a singer too – an excellent one at that.
I really gotta PAY ATTENTION!
Starting with her 2019 EP, May Love Find You, I immediately connected to the longing Deena Ade soulfully expresses on the glittery opener, "I Want You To Change Your Mind". Singing in cursive, in the style of British neo-soul legend, Amy Winehouse, Deena Ade has pretty much got Love Songs in her back pocket. She shuffles between Yoruba and English – as millennial/Gen Z Nigerian musicians often do – to deliver passionate ballads that curse the loser who had the nerve to break up with her ("Bitter"), see her dedicate herself to her prospective partner ("Cruising At Your Altitude"), and even critically reflect on her current romantic circumstances ("Lover"). With an active Soundcloud page that dates back to 5 years ago, Deena Ade has rather an extensive soundscape of quality tunes.
The mesmeric singer is set to take the stage at Femme Africa's International Women's Day event this weekend, so anyone reading from Lagos who has, like me, been inexplicably sleeping on this talent, here's your opportunity to witness wonder! (I am green with envy)
Selecting which songs to direct you guys to was so tough, but I'll leave you with a number that speaks to me V Deep:
Kamilah – 04.03.2020
R&B/soul singer, Kamilah boasts a peaceful and calming soundscape, her mellow rhythms and soft vocals inviting us away from our world into hers, as she opens up to listeners on a wide range of subject matters. On "Beautiful Boy", Kamilah gently encourages men to stand up against the patriarchal constructs that curtail their freedom, whilst on "Dark Skin | Coconut Oil" she speaks to black women, professing our beauty and shunning the "harsh untruths" that society purports: that black women aren't up to the beauty standards of other races.
Both off her pop-leaning debut album, Learning Curve, the full length project flaunts her phenomenal pipes, especially through vocal musings on songs like "Dangerous" and the ensorcelling album opener, "Careless Thieves". With a few instrumental breaks complimenting her compelling vocal work, Kamilah does a fabulous job of stripping us out of reality; I loved every minute of this escape.
Here's one that particularly blew me away:
ICTOOICY - 05.03.2020
ICTOOICY is likely to fit in amongst the "women you may know" or at least within the category of artists "you may have heard of", as her debut on Nigeria's Apple Music Charts indicates a level of popularity currently comparable with the ubiquitous Mandy & The Jungle, Billie Eilish's Grammy sweeping, WHEN WE FALL ASLEEP WHERE DO WE GO, and Wizkid's self-titled.
Released just last week, ICTOOICY's Sorry I Don't Like Phone Calls already boasts the number 3 spot on Apple Music's Alternative Album chart, and is ranked 75 in the top 100 Nigerian albums, of all genres. Given her newcomer status, this feat is not one to be overlooked.
ICTOOICY's achievements become even more awe-inspiring when you consider her paradoxically inaudible Do It Yourself approach to making music. ICTOOICY doesn't drown her music in technology in order to hide her beginners studio settings, but rather emphasises her circumstances in a way that celebrates the rustic energy of low-quality recordings. It is this refreshingly disruptive contribution to our widely homogenous musical landscape that immediately attracts listeners, and her dexterous versatility that keeps them.
The Poet With A Flow – self-proclaimed in her SoundCloud bio – ICTOOICY doesn't shy away from enchanting listeners with her mild-mannered singing performances ("Liberty Road"), opponent to her overconfident rap persona which we hear on songs like "Sage" and "Strep Throat Flow". Playing with echoes ("Forget About Us") and layering diverse vocal deliveries, the imaginative artist is able to bring vibrance to simpler beats, as exemplified on "Park Bench" or the Kiyo-assisted "Lights". Through her numerous creative techniques, ICTOOICY's music fashions around us a dream-like utopia in which perfection is possible, simply because imperfection is not.
Sorry I Don't Like Phone Calls, her early 2020 offering, is her fourth project within the year – ICY, as the voice messages that litter the project refer to her, is dedicated to music, her music. Throughout her first couple of years, ICY has remained equally as consistent with her sound as she is consistent with her releases, and it's payed off.
Join in the rave and stream the chart-topping drop, right now:
Bree Runway - 06.03.2020
Yesterday, one of Rihanna, Jorja Smith, Missy Elliot's faves, Bree Runway dropped her much-anticipated 2020 debut, "APESHIT" –inspired by a comment on her YouTube page: "At first when I started watching this, I thought ‘nahhh, she’s too much for me,’ but by the end of it I realised that I wasn’t enough for her".
As someone who is very often accused of being too much, this comment sat with me. It did with Bree too, who told i-D, "that right there, is the piping hot tea that has been served my whole life. People are so offended by you living your best life because they’re afraid to live theirs.”
On "APESHIT", Runway reminds all the ain't shit scaredy-cats of who the fuck she is, oozing the same incontestable confidence that one of her early role models, Lil Kim showed her. For the video, Bree takes inspiration from another one of her idols, Missy Elliot – whose already stamped her approval – entering a leopard print vortex dressed in exuberant leather clothing whilst rocking the signature dark liner + gloss lip.
A far cry from the first song she wrote ever wrote, "It's About Us" (it's about her ex), Bree Runway's music these days is made to inspire young black girls. Her message: do not to conform, be true to yourself always.
Nonconforming, Bree Runway doesn't confine herself to just one genre – although she kills it on the elctro-rap. Bree is a skillful rapper who's also got some pipes on her, and isn't afraid to flaunt both talents, even on the same song. On the lead track of her Be Runway EP, "2On" Bree raps "Who say I should turn the fuck down?//Who say I ain't this bitch when the lights go out?" letting us know that she is 100% sure of who she is and will not change that for anybody, whilst also encouraging black women to be confident in who they are and not to dim their shine so others feel more comfortable (she explains in depth via Instagram).
More overtly political, the video for the fourth track on the EP, "Big Racks" (featuring a spoken word know-your-worth outro from Brooke Candy) tackles racism in the corporate workplace. Opening the video with alarming statistics about the discrimination ethnic minorities face in the British workplace, including the colourism imbedded in wage disparities, Bree Runway proceeds to count the "Big Racks" she's made from her Be Runway Empire. However, despite her success, it's only when she conceals her blackness that the white man agrees to invest. Singing "You say I'm too rude" on the song's infectious hook, Bree highlights the 'aggressive black woman' trope that is so often used against Black Women, to stifle our voices, especially in the corporate world.
Regardless of what #they say, Bree is still making it rain:
BKTHERULA – 07.03.2020
Thanks to the ubiquity of music streaming platforms, we have access to an inconceivable amount of new music, from artists we're familiar with to emerging acts that are eager to penetrate our filter bubbles. In this climate, it is extremely difficult for new talent to stand out, but from the very first 16 on her debut project Love Santana, BKTHERULA did so, so effortlessly, to me.
Admittedly, my initial reaction was, "this is uncomfortable". With little regard for rhythm, BKTHERULA spits along to her own drum, forging an offbeat flow that, at its source, evokes discomfort. But after a few more seconds meandering through curiosity, amazement, skepticism, and wondering if I will be able to mimic one finally arrives at the mouth of BKTHERULA's turbulent flow – an undiluted appreciation for her approach to the art.
The tracks that follow – most noticeably “Official” and “He Say She Say”, the latter of which opens with ominous low register piano keys that expose the uncertainty to come from BK's bars –all put me at ease knowing that the weird flow that opened the album on "A Girl IS A GUN", wasn't by mistake, but by tried-and-tested design. Tracing back to Northern California (according to this video from the Rap Genius'), offbeat rapping is not a new phenomenon, but one that has been around since the late 80s, adopted by rap vets, such as E-40, Keak Da Sneak and Suga Free. There are, of course, a few acts who still get down with the offbeat flow, for example Blueface, but for me (an entirely biased source, who doesn't listen to much rap), no one is doing it quite like the Atlanta native, BKTHERULA. Quote me.
Dream Wife - 08.03.2020
Lately, I've been super into Vampirism. I watch at least one of the Twilight Saga movies at least once a week – although this week I've gone Cullen Free, as nostalgia took my back to my secondary school favourite, Vampire Diaries. Given my newfangled affinity for all things Vampire Fiction, it is no surprise that I have now been readily bewitched by the punk/pop rock sounds of the gritty ensemble, Dream Wife. Songs like "Let's Make Out" and "Kids" sound as if they were made to play behind one of Damon's mischievous escapades, whilst "Spend The Night" could easily replace The Features' "From Now On" during Bella and Edward's pre-calamity honeymoon montage. (I know this because I played the scene on mute whilst listening to this song, and I ended up crying like Bella because I too wished it was real :()
But beyond my Bellena complex, I was also arrested by the Immortal Children that Dream Wife's self-titled debut album bears. Reminiscent of the noughties noise I dabbled in as I explored just which type of rebellious teen I would be, their 2018 body of work pays homage to a wide variety of punk rock influences, the London-based trio configuring a soundscape with which most European Millennials and Gen-Zers would be familiar.
Starting out in Brighton University, as a "fake girl band" for their art project in 2014, Dream Wife were firmly in their twenties by the time they started taking their music seriously, but their lyrics still refer back to their angsty teenage years. On "Love Without Reason" they celebrate the youthfulness of love; with "Hey Heartbreaker" and "Act My Age", Rakel Mjöll's vocals take us through the trials of having an older (possibly married) partner; and "Taste" will probably mean something very different to the partiers who are familiar with orally ingested drugs, than it does to most others – Pitchfork said "new kiss", all I heard was Molly.
Things get a little more grizzly on the track's closing number, "F.U.U", where Rakel, aided by Icelandic rapper, Fever Dream unapologetically exclaim their violent desire to Fuck U Up! But for me, and probably every listener who runs through the album – which is their entire discography bar "Lolita"(watch this video!!) and a trilogy of remixes for the 2017 single, "Fire" – "Somebody" is the real standout number, in terms of subject matter at least. Tackling the culture of victim blaming, Dream Wife refuse objectification, professing, over an instructive chorus, "I am not my body, I am somebody."
Happy International Women's Day, Girls!
B3nya – 09.03.2020
Last November, Darkoo sent UK listeners into an deep frenzy, as she released upon us the indelible afro-swing banger, "Gangsta". Not only were listeners hooked on the unequivocally "mad jam", other artists were equally as drawn to the song, resulting in not one, but two remixes. As well convening Davido, Tion Wayne and SL on one remix, Darkoo gave fans the all female ensemble we'd been craving, inviting Ms Banks and Br3nya onto the hit single.
This was the first time I ever heard Br3nya.
Inspired by Nicki Minaj, Br3nya's early years were spent dishing out mini freestyles via Instagram, an exploit she only gained the confidence to embark on after her sister gave her some much needed advice: f**k what they say! Now, Br3nya's bars ooze confidence. On my personal favourite, "Double Dutch", the afroswing rapper brags about her big bands, and her way with men. Challenging us to "name another bitch as fly as me", Br3nya accompanies her 'self-gas' with a stern warning "don't fucking cross me, I'll get your head spun" – anger is the emotion she channels on her best work.
On the Hamzaa-assisted single "Sis", Br3nya adopts a more nurturing role, empowering women who might be down in the dumps, by assuring us that we are indeed all Boss Bitches. She might brag that she can steal your man if she really wants, but Br3nya is For The Girls above anything else. Interrogated by British publication, The Face, Br3nya has this Themyscirian vision for what she would do as ruler of the world:
I’d give all women crazy power and turn everything upside down. Men would literally be at our feet. There would be no inequality in terms of racism and gender and that kind of stuff. There would be no evil – I know you need balance in the world but there would be a lot less drama.
STORRY – 10.03.2020
Dropping her debut single, "Leave My Heart Behind" last June, multi-hyphenate artiste STORRY has been quick to put her name on music's map, releasing her debut album, prophetically-titled CH III: The Come Up, at the end of last month already. Written and produced all by herself, STORRY's debut is a -- display of her musical prowess.
As early on as track no. 2, the project's standout “Bown Down”, STORRY’s dynamic vocal range becomes -- apparent. Voice acting over her self-produced instrumentals on songs such as “Money Ain’t Free” and “I Need New Friends”, STORRY’s Come Up is incredibly theatrical, comparable, in places, to the ethereal talent, FKA Twigs.
A talented songwriter, STORRY’s discography is littered with relatable content, covering any topic that comes to mind. On “I Need New Friends” she sings about fake friends, and needing real ones in her life. After just watching the Yoruba drama Omotara Johnson (it’s about a malicious ass 'friend') this message seems even more important to digest. “Fuck Me Good”, on the other hand sees STORRY play the villain, sleeping with someone in relationship, although she is justified by her traumatic past; she laments “I won’t trust love again”. Criticising the hypocrisy and judgemental attitudes or high-horse “Surburban Bitches” on the so-titled song, “you got it all yet you want more”, STORRY goes on to profess that, like everyone, she wants to live lavish but that she isn’t materialistic or capitalistic about it. Fancying herself as 2020’s Robin Hood, STORRY is interested in bridging the wealth gap, and advocating for women and children’s rights.
Speaking of Ranges, I have now learned that no conversation about RANGE is complete without STORRY in it. Period.
Empress Of – 13.03.2020
One thing I have enjoyed the most about this month of discovery is tapping into genres that I typically wouldn’t explore, and discovering the multiple ways in which women express themselves through music.
Although I do have a playlist for electronic-type songs, it’s a genre that’s been little-explored by me, so getting into the electro-pop/dance grooves of Empress Of has been one of the more fulfilling discoveries of the month.
I first heard Empress Of on Tommy Genesis' self-titled, although I wasn't paying enough attention to the featured artists to dig into Empress Of back then. Regardless, her performance was invaluable in the making of one of my favourite tracks on the album, her soft vocals, gliding through Tommy's raspy sung raps, so seductively on the airy number, "Naughty".
On all her collaborations, Empress Of employs all the necessary attributes the ideal partner for whomever she marries on the track should have. She and Khalid seem an unlikely pair, but together they make for an invigorating pop duo, with two commendable dance tracks, Spanish-speaking "Suncity" and "Why Don't You Come On" with DJDS. Of course, Empress Of has lined up a good number of artiste-producer collaborations, caressing beats from Kito ("Wild Girl") and Pional ("The Way That You Like") with her magnetic voice.
A singer, songwriter and producer, Empress Of is an incredibly deft artiste, one whose multilingual capabilities – which caught me by surprise on “Trust Me Baby”, one of the standouts from her 2018 LP, Us – is complemented by her uncontested vocal range (“Just the Same” and “Love for Me” on this album especially flaunt her comfort within top registers). Her next album, I'm Your Empress Of arrives in three weeks. Much like its two predecessors, I'm Your Empress Of contains solo shots only. Lorely, as her absolutely adorable mother-cum-stylist refers to The Empress, definitely needs no help enticing you into her Empire.
Watch the Wild Girl go, below:
Shura - 16.03.2020
So today, Pitchfork put me on to a brand new single, "elevator girl", by British 'pop' artist, Shura, featuring Philly native, Ivy Sole. From its nostalgic opening, "elevator girl" is reminiscent of 90s and noughties R&B music, an influence that becomes especially blatant when Ivy Sole comes in. Like -Beyonce's "Upgrade U" or Christina Milian's "Say I" , "elevator girl" follows a prominent typical singer ft. rapper structure, where the majority of the song is sung before a rapper, typically male, ushers in a twist toward the end of the track. Well, Shura is doing the same, but (thankfully) different, convoking a fellow woman to bring the hip-hop heat to her track.
"elevator girl" is, according to Shura herself, based on the rush of a first date, especially the timid excitement that might fill those awkward moments of silence. Most of Shura's recent music is inspired by events she goes through with lady loves. Off her sophomore album forevher, "religion (you can lay your hands off me)" is a lustful articulation of her desire to get intimate with her girlfriend – whom she was yet to meet physically, s/o Tinder – followed up by "the stage" which describes their first date at a concert. Borrowing from soul's jazzy chords, Shura attributes her soundscape on forevher to inspiration from African American icons such as Whitney Houston and Patrice Rushen. Originally breaking out as an electropop singer, Shura's new sound pronounces her move to New York post-debut album. If you couldn't hear the 'urban' on Nothing's Real's follow-up, her enlisting Ivy Sole should be enough of an indication that Shura is broadening her horizons, and tapping into the hip-hop mainstream that dominates American music.
Shura's move from London to NY was accompanied by an exchange in record labels. Unhappy with her situation at the London firm, Shura got herself dumped, in order to be free of the requirements they had of her that she was not prepared to fulfil. Labels have been accused of viewing artists solely as financially lucrative investments, putting the business over the talent's welfare where the two don't align. For that reason, artists are often pushed to continually produce work, in order to stay relevant, in order to continue bringing in revenue for their label. Shura had other plans for herself: "I felt like the most sane thing I could do for myself was to be quiet until I had something to say".
Listen to Shura's Official 2019 Statement below:
In the late 2000s, after the success of "Don’t Upset the Rhythm (Go Baby Go)", singer and bassist, Shingai Shoniwa, accompanied by Dan Smith on the guitar, ruled the British Pop charts as the frontwoman the indie rock band, Noisettes. Following the aforementioned hit single, came another inescapable banger in the UK airwaves, "Never Forget You", and even a soundtrack placement in the cult phenomenon Twilight Saga ("Sister Rosetta" in Breaking Dawn Part 1 (2011)). Unfortunately, the Noisette’s reign didn’t last much longer after that, their third and final album, Contact (2012) peaking at 30 on the UK Charts.
Last year, after nearly a decade off the map, Noisettes' frontwoman, Shingai Shoniwa stepped into the fold once again, launching her solo career with a vibrant four-tracker, Ancient Futures. Created transnationally – from South Africa, to Italy to the UK, and Zimbabwe of course – Ancient Futures, with its befitting title, borrows from traditional African styles, intertwining 70s and 80s South African rhythms with contemporary pop synths.
Raised in London, Shingai has always been in tune with her Zimbabwean culture, in particular with the music of her homeland. She tells The List: "Music is a huge part of black identity in the UK and culturally it has given birth to countless subcultures such as reggae, sound systems, soul, jazz, rock'n'roll, garage and punk. I was really lucky to grow up in a household which celebrated all of this music and more. Music has played a massive part in uplifting the community I grew up in and bringing together people from all walks of life."
As well as bringing people together through her unique fusion of sounds, Ancient Futures is also an empowering body of work for Shingai’s diaspora kin, who are encouraged to embrace one another other as home on the opening numbers "Coming Home" and "Zimtron". Preaching non-conformity on the closing track, "Champion Styles", Shingai also discusses being enlightened and realising one’s political power as an individual, suggesting we exert this power against the system through "Revolution".
Ancient Futures, like all Shingai’s music, is designed to get people on their feet, but amidst the chirpy beats and uplifting lyrics is an awareness of the socio-political environment that surrounds her.
“There’s still a dark side which I think we can address and do a lot better in, in terms of inclusion. As a female, person of colour, I’ve not experienced much change in that. I still feel that I have to work really really hard just to maintain a job, just to get the support from publishers and certain parts of the industry.”
“It still feels like there are quotas, only a certain [number] of girls let in. I think the pie-chart still needs to change because, at the end of the day, people still want amazing music.”
This coming from a veteran in the pop music industry is clear proof that we need to do more to support women – especially African women, who tirelessly put in work, despite the rewards being less than that of their male counterparts, for no reason other than the fact that they are women. Shingai demands better from the executives in music business, but, as consumers, we must not forget our own complicity in upholding patriarchal systems that deliberately leave women out of the picture. We must all do better. We should all be the change Shingai expects to see.
Stream the solo debut project here:
Ojerime – 18.03.2020
From Streatham’s loud and proud Dave to transnational fave Ms Banks, South London is brimming with musical talent. Ojerime is amongst these ranks. Bringing 90s R&B into 2020 Britain, Orejime is a dexterous singer, who names the likes of Brandy, Keith Sweat, SVW, and Mariah Carey as her childhood icons. Her music is certainly reminiscent of MTV’s television heyday – the culture capital in the lives of most Millennials and Gen-Zers – but Ojerime isn’t simply a copy and pasted version of the artists we grew up on. Fusing her South London identity with the predominantly NY influences on her music, Ojerime delivers unique, at times even unconventional, records. Breaking the rules when it comes to song length especially, the heart-bearing singer isn’t afraid to cut numbers shorts, with Whack World lengths of about a minute, or extend interludes, her “Mansur’s Interlude” reaching over 4:20.
Ojerime has recorded four bodies of work thus far: Ojerime: The Sillhouette (2015), Fang2001 (2016), 4U (2018), and the recent release B4 I Breakdown. Released on the 13th of March, B4 I Breakdown explores “themes of dark thoughts, mental health, sex and dug use”, conceived after a very public breakdown in April 2019, which resulted in her hospitalisation. The album charts her mental health journey over the past year, drawing not only from her experiences, but also from those of others – Ojerime is blatantly self-aware and emotionally critical.
Her songs reflect her confidence in who she is. Her lyrics might be laden with heartache, at times, but she is not pretending to be anything other than who she is. “Halfcrazy” is track that illustrates this in a way that resonates deeply within me. Singing about her bordering on obsessiveness over a guy she fancies (probably loves, or at least thinks she loves), “Halfcrazy” as well as “SMV” (upon which she repetitively sings, “this ain’t no ordinary love”) fully appreciates that these feelings aren’t 'normal'. Still, Ojerime is not shy or ashamed of what she feels, or that she feels, even. “Hit me up one more time if you’re down to ride,” is relatable content to anyone having a tough time getting over somebody you used to know – you know better than to ask, because if you have to ask it means you probably shouldn’t be asking, but you ask anyway.
Battling with depression all her life, Ojerime turned to self-help books, meditation and Buddhism to help her manage her condition, all of which have helped her hone her confidence in who she is. Proclaiming to the Guardian: “If I didn’t do music, I wouldn’t be as depressed,” Ojerime confesses that industry has definitely been a tough one to manoeuvre , however her way of dealing and advice to other rising artists is to embrace being independent at the start, she explains: "you gain a better sense of self. Believe in yourself, experiment and gain as much knowledge as you possibly can through mistakes... Most importantly, listen to yourself, only you know what’s best for you in the long run."
One thing I love the most about discovering female artists, is discovering their feminist agendas too. For Ojerime, her mission is to normalise vulnerability in black women, and for people to recognise it alongside our strength and our beauty: “we are not one-dimensional,”
Ojerime goes on: “believe black women have been seen as an afterthought for so many years. Nowadays it’s one black woman at a time, instead of celebrating all of us. The media can push this agenda/rivalry which isn’t at all necessary when a lot of us are diverse in what we produce."
So, my fellow black women, B4 U Breakdown from the innumerable pressures we have to face – from misogynoir to the bloody coronavirus – remember Ojerime believes in your strength no matter how you choose to express it. And stream this while you breakdown, stream this:
Brooke Candy – 19.03.2020
Brooke Candy isn’t new to the game. Making music since 2012, Brooke Candy is a familiar name, an artist I’ve heard in passing but never quite got into her work. Well, that changes now.
Working as a stripper in Hollywood prior to her music debut, Brooke Candy emerged on the scene as an eccentric, sex-positive, hip-hop freshman. A bad bitch rapper right from the start, Candy’s debut single “Opulence” warned of her high-flying status. To illustrate just how on top she is, "Opulence"'s nouveau riche music video opens with Brooke winning an altercation with a man by breaking his neck with her stripper heels, before fixing on her crown – a mullet wig – and a pair of bogus sunglasses.
Over the years, the Drag Queen fangirl has retained her theatrical polish. The music videos for her latest project are equally as ridiculous as the above; butterflies flutter through her heels as snakes glide out of her mouth on “XXXTC”, and in “Drip” Candy delights in canned pussy, like a true frisky cat.
Titled Sexorcism, Brooke Candy’s latest body of work is exactly what it says on the label: an expulsion of all her carnal desires strapped on into 12 whetting tracks, upon which she dares a number of your favourite hip hop acts to match her lechery – “Nymph" and "Honey Pussy", being her only two solo takes. Emerging as her debut album, Sexorcism has been a long time coming, given all her songs leading up to this have been sex-positive, sex-driven and, to be honest, sex-inducing. “Cum”, featuring Iggy Azealia, advises the ladies to “get yours, get yours first, and then maybe just leave”, some much needed counsel for the cis-het girls who can count the number of times guys have gotten them there on one hand (I, personally, don’t need any hands at all); the Bree Runway-assisted “Swing” compares dick to pasta and the melodic “Freak Like Me” encourages everyone to be as open about their salacious fantasies as she is.
Brooke Candy has fun with all her songs. In a track by track breakdown with Billboard she uses the adjective “silly” so many times, I can only conclude that she’s not too serious about life… just about sex. Speaking fondly about working with all the talented woman on the album, Brook Candy is explicitly clear about why each act was the best voice to accompany hers through their specific tracks. Candy might be all about the fun content, but she is still intentional about who she calls to join her for the ride.
Her wanton sexual liberty throughout the years has, of course, been an unchaste pro-feminist move, so it is no surprise that Ms Candy has also, previously, joined forces with Russian protest band Pussy Riot, alongside MNDR and Mykki Blanco for the anarchist record, “My Sex”. Opening “my sex is my weapon”, Brooke Candy lets us know she is down to fight the good fight. Her current plan of action: giving the world one big Sexorcism. We need it.