For my mixtape, the theme was South African braggadocio rap. The reason for this is because I felt like it would be a good closer to all of my previous blog posts. For most of my post, I’ve written about South African female rappers and how their rap styles represented this new wave of rap. Though it isn’t new this, rap style has become more popularized over the years, especially with female rappers. Along with the notion that more than one female artist is being embraced at the same time.
Braggadocio rap has been taken over by female artists. I think this is because of its relatability. Most female artists tend to talk about their clothes or how they feel about themselves, the way they look and the nice things they can afford themselves to have. Which for a lot of women they’ve already obtained or can attain soon. Whenever an artist puts out a song with her feeling themselves and they talk about how they are the baddest person in the room, every woman can relate to that when they are getting dressed up to go out or they’re at a party. In a way, the songs are a way of empowerment. These songs boost the confidence of its listeners by allowing them to emulate the rapper and the energy they give off.
Another reason I believe braggadocio rap has become popular among female artists is because of how women’s role in society have changed throughout the years. Women no longer want to live with the strict rules society has placed on us. Because of this, there has been a rapid growth of Women publicly stating that they are their own entities who can do as they please. Whether it be wearing whatever you feel comfortable in, deciding, your career or education is more important in starting a family or just being self-sufficient. With this newfound womanism, goonies be music to match, to encapsulate how women of this time feel and think, which I believe is done well by these artists.
For my mixtape, I picked five songs by five different South African artists, two of which I have already written about. Moozlie’s “I’m a star”, Gigi Lamayne’s “Bozza”, Rouge’s “W.A.G.”, Boity’s “018’s finest”, and Nadia Nakai’s “Nat Meaan” embody braggadocio rap to the fullest. Throughout these songs, each woman talks about themselves and their accomplishments. With each song, there is this element of talking themselves up, whether it be by emphasizing their talent or popularity. Even though all the artists do this, it doesn’t foster the sense of only one of us can succeed or only one of us can be at the top of her career. If anything, I believe it is a way of motivating each other to do and be better with their craft. To me, these songs are part of this new era of female rap where it’s not so much about what others think of you, but how you think of yourself. In these songs, these women don’t care about what others have to say about them or what they think. All that matters is that they are hustling, getting to fulfill their passion, while also getting paid. It creates this era of doing things your own way, because at the end of the day, you’re the only one living your life.
This can also be said for their music videos. Music videos for these types of songs tend to be very flashy and grand. Showing off cars, clothes, money as a way to add to how you are presented in public light. This can be said for Moozli’s, Gigi’s, and Nadia’s videos. They tend to be the main focus well, having certain objects around them as a way to accessorize the lyrics of the song. In these videos, the artists are the main attraction. They choose what’s hot and what’s not by what they decide to showcase. In these 2-to-3-minute-clips, the world is their oyster in they’re not afraid to show it, which is why I’ve picked these songs for my mixtape.