In the same month, Night Slugs bossman Bok Bok can release a near perfect mix, a a straight-up house track, the banger “Pussy Trak” (that’s been begging for a release for years), and “Finish Them:” a rap track by relative newcomer Tkay Maidza. Not to mention his “Charizmatic Self EP” from this May.
Bok Bok is unstoppable (I mean, he’s sort of creating his own genre), and all these projects are so necessary to experience, but “Finish Them” showcases the potential energy that Bok Bok’s career has: a machine-filled Jersey-club beat works perfectly underneath 18-year-old Australian rapper Maidza’s calm, cool, and collected flow. It calls to mind Rye Rye and Blaqstarr’s iconic collaboration, or perhaps even a contemporary M.I.A. and Diplo. Yes, Bok Bok’s main muse is Kelela, for sure, but Maidza’s vocals actually fit more with Bok Bok’s interest in hitting hard without a melody, rather than the synthier, croonier stuff he makes with Kelela. The repetitive titular phrase is both a video game-style domination and a subversively dirty innuendo, but it’s never filled with malice or submission. Rather, Maidza’s asserts her monolithic power, aided rather than controlled by Bok Bok’s beat.
I have a feeling we’re going to be seeing a lot more from Tkay Maidza in the near future, and I have a feeling it’s gonna go hard.
• Tkay Maidza: https://soundcloud.com/tkaymaidza
• Bok Bok: https://soundcloud.com/bokbok
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