There were a lot of hip-hop releases this week — we’ll give you a rundown.
Groundhog Day every week — or when it comes to hip-hop: Release Friday. And he had a lot up his sleeve today: Iggy Azalea is back after a two-year break and Deutschrap offers all facets from Marteria to Luciano to Liz and both Cro and Takt32 are around the corner with larger projects. We have listened to the new releases and give you a small overview here.
Iggy Azalea — “Money Come”
With the release of her LP THE END OF AN ERA 2021, the rapper announced a musical break at the same time. Two years later, the Australian-born seems to be back in the rap game with the lead single “Money Come” off her forthcoming fourth studio album. Typical of the rapper, it’s about success and a lavish lifestyle. But here she also focuses on sexual empowerment, male financial independence and self-confidence. In the accompanying music video, the 33-year-old storms into an office with a group of women and replaces the male-dominated workforce with women.
Marteria — “Man is descended from weapons”
Marteria already gave a first taste of his new single “Man is descended from weapons” on the Hurricane – now the track is officially out. On a more relaxed beat, the 40-year-old raps about the human dilemma of wanting to destroy uncomfortable qualities and making violence a common automatism through greed for power.
“It seems to have been this way since the beginning of mankind/Everything that’s good for us is flattened/I think the ending will be a classic”
Liz — “3 grams”
In “3 Gramm” Liz combines her past experiences in Frankfurt with her current success and combines this with a touch of heartbreak. In contrast to her last track “Billie Jean”, the rapper doesn’t take us through a night of partying, but shows us a more emotional side of herself. In the music video, she looks at video excerpts from her life and reviews key moments. “3 Gramm” is the third single from their second album AMY WINEHOUZE, which is scheduled for release on October 13th. On the LP, the 25-year-old addresses her love-hate relationship with her native city of Frankfurt. The allusion to Amy Winehouse is intended to underscore Liz’s parallels to the life of the British singer.
Luciano — “All I Need”
With “All I Need” Luciano celebrates love. After his last release “Mami” included an international guest contribution from BIA, he releases another solo project with “All I Need” in which he promises loyalty to his love partner.
“Yes, look, your smile/warm and heals my wounds deep in my heart”
Capital Bra ft. OTTO — “What’s Up”
In the meantime, Capital Bra has almost become an integral part of Release Fridays, because with “Was geht” Capi has already delivered a new single four Fridays in a row. On a party beat by Bledbeats, the 28-year-old raps about a lonely night wandering around town. A bilingual song text in German and Albanian will be created by its feature partner OTTO.
“Walk around alone/Don’t feel the rain anymore/My head is foggy”
Genetikk — “Crime Pays”
“Crime Pays” is the second foretaste of the upcoming album SACRIFICE. While Genetikk serve up a drill-beat message to liars on their first single release, Du Lügst, the duo’s focus on Crime Pays is listing their accomplishments and praising them through a series of punchlines. Nevertheless, digs at haters are not left unmentioned.
Cro — SPACEJAM EP
On his new EP, Cro, typical of him, once again combines rap with pop. In the tracks he puts the thematic focus on love and reflects on his lifestyle. The rapper lets pop sounds meet soul samples like in “so bad” and creates a cheerful dance track with “extasy”. Also featured on SPACEJAM are guest contributions from Blumengarten and Léonie Barbot. The music video for “Never Again Normal” ft. Blumengarten drops at 2 p.m. today on Cro’s YouTube channel.
Bar 32 — UNSOLVABLE EQUATION
After Takt32 had already released the collaboration album MOAI with Kool Savas in February, his solo album UNLÖSBAREEGEICHEN followed just a few months later. In it, the German rapper offers a wild mix of topics in addition to well-versed punchlines. While the native Berliner makes an announcement to the rap scene in “RIP” ft. Badmómzjay, in “Wolkendecke” ft. Khrome he talks about hope, which is untouchable in the face of doubters. With “Zu Haus” ft. Monet192, Takt32 also offers a track about love and the heartache that is sometimes associated with it. UNSOLVABLE EQUATION offers highs and lows between smooth, deep tracks and arrogant bangers.