Future Stars: Shamir (XL Recordings)

Taken from this week’s Future Pop mailer. Click here to subscribe.

I had Shamir Bailey down as a pretentious electro artist aimed at indie bores, but after watching his new video for On The Regular I realise that he can be, and obviously wants to be, so much more than that. The 20-year-old rapper/singer from Las Vegas is male, but his voice sounds female (which he explains here), comparable to Azalea Banks or Kelis. On The Regular is witty and catchy, and the video is colourful and kitch. I love the lyrics, especially “Don’t try me, I’m not a free sample.” I might even say it’s my favourite rap song of the year, and I’m only on my second listen so far. I still can’t get into Shamir’s other music, but all you need is one great song to break through, as long as it is heard by the right people. Let’s hope On The Regular is a hit so we can hear more like this from Shamir.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lp9GgdCgMXk]

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