“I’m still a Tassie girl and ain't a fuckin' damn thing changed,” Miss Kaninna spits during MOB TIES.
Once her BLACKPRINT mixtape drops, everything’s bound to pop-off: “It’s Blak Britney season,” bitch!
A proud Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung, Kalkadoon and Yirendali sovereign woman, Miss Kaninna relishes in calling out “Aussie-Aussie-Aussie/ Oi-Oi-Oi” chanters (mad props) and gets dirty/freaky in a casually graphic way (eg. “Do the splits lickin’ back on a dick” – the Parental Advisory Explicit Content sticker is valid). “I ain’t afraid to take it there” is an understatement. Sorry not sorry, prudes, Miss Kaninna’s not for you.
She’s hilarious, too: “Mug too fug, I had to go celibate.”
Stay up to date with what’s happening in and around Melbourne here.
BLACKPRINT mixtape is great party music, but it’s born from resistance. She’s all about educating people the world over on the true history of “so-called Australia”, with a focus on Indigenous land rights, preserving the oldest living culture on Earth and fostering Black power. Every single word on here is worth memorising.
With its hi-hat-heavy beat, CHAT MY SHIT references old-school hip hop. This intro cut runs for one minute only, but cuts to the chase: “I’m Indigenous so you know you gon’ be feelin’ this and if you don’t then you’re prob’ly white supremacist… I got land back on my mind and I’m looking for a fight.”
The title track opens with a tweaky drone, before thwacking drums bring it home; the big-beat mayhem of Smack My Bitch Up by The Prodigy is referenced on this one. Listen out for the sound of silence, used to spectacular effect in the track’s final quarter.
Slinky bass glides through the creepy-hot LOOK AT ME NOW (feat. Kobie Dee). Sax is used sparingly, hitting like sprinklings of gold dust.
Bass notes played on piano, blazing electric guitar licks, clanking sounds that bring RATM to mind – her nuanced beats are delightfully unpredictable with a live-sounding edge.
“FUCK YOU, BITCH!” – HANDOUT, which features Waanyi/Gangaliida MC Jamahl Yami, opens with a bang. Miss Kaninna’s scattergun rapping astounds while she dismantles white Australia’s systemic racism. Inspired percussion drops later in the arrangement and the dancefloor beckons.
When her delivery hits boiling point, we hear Kelis’s Caught Out There choruses (the fuming “I hate you so much right now!” parts) as an influence.
“You hide behind your screen but ima meet you at your front door, BITCH!” – the hectic STOLEN WAGES veers into punk-rock territory while exposing cyclic dispossession.
A self-described “Black pop baddie”, Miss Kaninna is ultimately a truthteller. She’s furious about injustice, but also chic and unmesswithable.
Miss Kaninna’s braggadocio is warranted (“Deadly bitch ‘til the day I die”). Bring on the debut album!
Did you know? Miss Kaninna appeared on a Times Square billboard as part of Amazon Music’s Artists to Watch.
LABEL: SOUL HAS NO TEMPO
RELEASE: 21 AUGUST
