Angell Mutoni (IG: @angellmutoni.rw) continues to kill it in Rwandan hip hop with her latest release “Pandemic Pack” that premiered at the end of December 2020. This mixtape includes her thoughts, feelings, and reflections of this past year put into music. In her freestyle, “Woah” is almost like an ode to all her accomplishments as a hip hop artist in Rwanda.
A common element we see in this freestyle as in many other hip hop songs by various hip hop artists is braggadocio. Braggadocio is the way that artists boast about themselves through their rhymes. Rather than coming from a place of arrogance, it is a sense of pride in their work and their culture. In comparison to others, Angell Mutoni (Twitter: @AngellMutoniRw) reiterates her high ranking as a hip hop artist. She repeats “I stay ill” meaning that her lyrics are legitimate and she’s always on top of her flows. Angell Mutoni is proud of her craft and knows that she has come a long way to be where she is now.
She mentions the hard work and focus that goes into her music. Her top priority is never losing sight of what matters most which is securing the bag and staying true to her authentic self. Angell Mutoni does not give in to the pressure for women in hip hop culture to change her sound or look a certain way to get ahead in the rap scene. Instead, she has learned to be assertive in her wants and disinterests which includes not wearing certain clothing or sing/rap particular songs because that is what “a woman should do.”
Angell includes that it is not always easy and that difficult days are bound to be experienced. She adds there are “half of the struggles that we carry, we never show” to point out that everyone is going through something and have their own battles to fight. Especially amidst the pandemic, it is important that she remind listeners that there is a light at the end of the tunnel if you continue to aim attention to your grind.