Rap refines hits, delivers emotional insights and the right beats for self-celebration.
Badmómzjay and Kontra K talk about the dark side of success while Casper grapples with his life and his losses. OG Keemo doesn’t reveal anything new about himself, but he delivers intelligent wordplay and Shirin David ensures that hits sometimes appear in a hip-hop recap.
Badmómzjay – SURVIVAL FASHION
On Friday (November 24th) Badmómzjay released her second album SURVIVAL MODE, on which she shows different sides of herself and at the same time expands more musically. With “‘Komm Mit” the 21-year-old dares to write a song with Afrobeat influences, “Auf die Party” ft. Domiziana is – as the title suggests – a celebration track with electronic beats and on “Why am I like that?” Badmómzjay explains that in addition to being a role model, she is also a person who sometimes feels bad. Even though she reflected on the downsides of fame and her psychological suffering on her debut album BADMÓMZ, with “How To Survive” she goes even deeper and even amazes. She discusses the loss of friends and elsewhere sings about days when she doesn’t actually want to slip into the role of Badmómzjay, but has to do it anyway.
In addition to the deep tracks, the self-proclaimed Berliner also has enough pieces in which she simply celebrates her achievements, which in turn gives the work a certain lightness. While more emotional songs make you feel closer to the artist, tracks like “Yeah Hoe” simply invite you to shake and rap along. In keeping with the album release, the rapper shared the music video for the single “Hallelujah” – a song about sexual attraction and her dominance. Here you go:
Casper – ONLY LOVE, ALWAYS
Casper also used the release Friday to release the album ONLY LOVE, ALWAYS – the successor to EVERYTHING WAS BEAUTIFUL AND NOTHING HURT (2022). Anyone who is a Casper fan should definitely be happy about the album, because it once again drips with melancholy à la Casper. Over the length of the album he discusses the downsides of his success, getting older and life in Berlin. While fans can certainly find a few Easter eggs on the record (like the allusion to LP predecessor HINTERLAND), the Bielefeld native also manages to attract new listeners with the tracks.
He not only raps about the current situation, but also reflects a lot about his past and looks for the roots of “the problem”. Melodically, the record offers a refreshing change between emotional, quieter songs, aggressive rap bangers and pop hits like “Sommer” ft. Cro. However, the latter seems too intentionally deep for the pop sound – or too pop for the associated theme of summer sadness.
Here too there was a new single and video for the release. In the track “Get air” he talks about the loss of friends, time and ultimately a little bit of himself. Where he talks about his “panoramic lake view”, which he cannot enjoy because his thoughts are racing and he asks yourself: Has everyone else or I changed?
Helene Fischer ft. Shirin David – “Breathlessly through the night” (10 Years Anniversary Version)
Oops, what happened there?! Some people may have asked themselves that when pop star Helene Fischer and rap queen Shirin David announced their collaboration. Two musicians who couldn’t be more opposite and who nevertheless teamed up for a remake of “Atemlos”. No wonder some were surprised.
I can’t and don’t want to say anything about the hit part and its implementation – after all, this is a hip-hop recap. About David’s rap part: You have to give her credit for managing to adapt her part to the genre without losing the rap aspect. It also conveys important messages – such as self-love and acceptance of others. Otherwise it’s just “Atemlos” by Helene Fischer, what else can you say except that from a marketing perspective it was a really clever move by the two of them to gain a foothold in each other’s territory and their respective fans.
OG Keemo – “Torshavn”
Named after the capital of the Faroe Islands, OG Keemo raps in his single about his skills, which also lead him to “vacation in countries with funny place names”. The track without the hook is a typical OG Keemo banger, in which he largely talks about his success, but does so with clever puns, comparisons and rhymes. For the quieter, smoother beat this time he brought in regular producer Funkfather Frank.
Kontra K – “Head F***”
On November 9th, Kontra K released his twelfth album THE HOPE IS STEALING FROM ME. Now comes the single “Head Gef***”. In the track he raps about the pressure of having to maintain his career. Even after numerous successes, it is not guaranteed. A line that sticks straight away in the piece: “You say I did it/And the cops I deal with drugs”. An allusion to the investigation against the Berlin native at the end of 2022, which investigated the suspicion that Kontra K was said to have sold 100 kilograms of cannabis.
In the music video, the 36-year-old doesn’t go into nature this time, but simply shows himself in front of a white wall. During the course of the video he then puts a rope around his neck, which is instead tied to numerous balloons instead of the blanket. In the description of the clip, the rapper states that “Head Gef***” will be played as the opener on his upcoming tour.