"With this video, I'm really trying to combat all of the upbeat songs playing on the radio that are degrading to women," rap newcomer, Leaf, says of her brand new clip, "Slick." "You know, there's all these songs with lines like 'these hoes ain't loyal' or telling girls that 'you're just a sexual object and nothing more' and so I wanted to come back with a couple songs that are positive and [empowering] for females." The 19-year-old, Brooklyn-born rapper recently signed to Fool's Gold after label honcho A-Trak got tipped off to her work through his brother, Chromeo's Dave-1. The label just dropped her debut EP, Magnet Bitch, earlier last month and we're excited to be premiering one of the record's videos, the aforementioned "Slick."
Throughout the song, Leaf shows off a fluid vocal range that has drawn comparisons to Nicki Minaj, with her voice hopscotching between airy, melodic singing and brash, lower-pitched rhymes. The video is just as fire, showing the rapper palling around in LA; shots of her hanging out in vintage convertibles or in a swimming pool alternate with trippy, kaleidoscopic cuts and red-filtered scenes. "The video is a project that's part of my movement, 'MBM," which stands for Magnet Bitch Movement," she tells us. "It's a female empowerment lifestyle brand telling girls to magnetize. I believe in the law of attraction and that with hard work and projecting the right energy into the world, you can complete any goal you want." She continues, "the video was shot, produced and edited by women. It's a completely female project."
As with Nicki Minaj or Angel Haze, it's exciting to see another female rapper who's just as bold and in-your-face as the guys and one whose persona seamlessly simultaneously shows off an interest in fashion and style while addressing deeper, feminist-leaning issues in her music. We hear the artist is working with Fool's Gold to put out her debut full-length later this year and, in the meantime, you can catch her down in Austin for SXSW where she'll be playing two showcases, the Biz 3 showcase on 3/19 at The Main and the Fool's Gold showcase on 3/20 at The Gypsy Room. Give "Slick" a watch, above.
As with Nicki Minaj or Angel Haze, it's exciting to see another female rapper who's just as bold and in-your-face as the guys and one whose persona seamlessly simultaneously shows off an interest in fashion and style while addressing deeper, feminist-leaning issues in her music. We hear the artist is working with Fool's Gold to put out her debut full-length later this year and, in the meantime, you can catch her down in Austin for SXSW where she'll be playing two showcases, the Biz 3 showcase on 3/19 at The Main and the Fool's Gold showcase on 3/20 at The Gypsy Room. Give "Slick" a watch, above.