Bump To This is BE’s monthly curated playlist of the tracks that we’ve had on heavy rotation. Scroll through the newest additions including local artists such as Pania, Krown, Ziggy Ramo, Sampa the Great, 3K and Agung Mango. Link up to our Spotify to hear more!
Carlo by Pania
I was lucky enough to first hear this song performed live by Pania at the BE. DISRUPT magazine launch in April of this year. I was enticed by the groovy chorus and her smooth vocals, and wonderfully impressed by Pania’s rap break down that featured self-loving lyrics such as, “Always knew I was a goddess/Always knew I was the only rose in the garden” and “I love myself so I let you in”. I was stoked to see it finally released at the start of July under the name ‘Carlo’. It’s an upbeat, follow-up track from her first, more soulful release ‘Lotus’. The young Melbourne singer says she was heavily influenced by 90s R&B and rap growing up and inspires to create music that connects with people. She is well on her way.
Another Melbourne based artist to watch is Krown. The South Sudanese rapper is doing more than just making music, he is one of the founders of Military Mind who handle entertainment, events and streetwear apparel. He also plays a big part in his community, acting as a role model for the youth and using his platform to speak on injustices and issues affecting the Melbourne based South Sudan community. He was a mentor in the 2019 Voice for Chance docuseries sharing his story and his hopes for the future. I met Krown at Ego Expo earlier this year and was instantly inspired by how passionate, approachable and proficient he was. The song ‘My People’ from his latest album ‘Hold The Flag’ immediately stood out to me as it embodies his sense of community and has a classic hip hop sound.
Ziggy Ramo is an Indigenous Australian hip hop artist from Arnhem Land who moved with his family to Perth, W.A. at 6-years-old. He was raised to use his voice and intelligence to fight for freedom and equality for his community and he uses his platform to do just that. He also promotes self-love, just like in his most recent release, the beautiful ‘Pretty Boy’. Going back to 2016, his debut EP ‘Black Thoughts’ delved into Australia’s deep yet casual problem with racism against its First Nations people. ‘White Lies’ is the more aggressive of the three tracks, playing on the stereotype of “Angry Blaks” and features lyrics such as, “Face it, I know you think I’m tasteless/Stick my balls in your mouth/Tell me how it tasting” and “Australia loves Kendrick/But when I talk about the same shit you get defensive”. His robust raps are so articulate and flow perfectly over the commanding beat.
3K is a group of four young guys with different backgrounds, based in different locations around Melbourne. They formed in 2017 and have been experimenting with rap flows and productions styles ever since. Melbourne-based Agung Mango also started rapping in 2017 and through the local hip-hop scene and his mates, dived into the creative aspects of hip hop by starting the production team, ‘Shady Trees’, with 3K’s Beluga. In 2019, the 3K emcees and Agung linked up for ‘OPENFORBUSINESS’, a five-track collaborative EP. Their collective talent forms a unique sound with incredible production. ‘HOME N AWAY’ was the official single off the EP, released in late 2018. The above video is a special rendition performed with a full band, quite different from the original track you’ll find in our playlist, but we think both are pretty dope.
Sampa the Great is no stranger to the Bump To This playlist. This time, we’re adding her brand new song ‘OMG’ from her forthcoming album ‘The Return’ which is due September 13. The insane visuals, directed by Sanjay De Silva, are as colourful and cultural as the track. Shot between South Africa and Botswana, Sampa was able to share her heritage, culture and family with viewers, even featuring her parents in the clip. “It’s broadly about flexing your culture! Loving where you’re from and even being shocked at the realization of not knowing how dope it is to be ‘who you are’,” Sampa told Pitchfork.
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