Taken from this week’s Future Pop mailer. Click here to subscribe.
A couple of years ago, there seemed to be a new female rapper for me to feature here every week. Now the dust has settled, Iggy and Nicki are miles ahead of the pack, but they shouldn’t get complacent – it’s never too late for someone to shake things up. That person could be Tink, a 20-year-old rapper and singer from Illinois signed to Timbaland’s imprint of Epic. Before signing, she self-released five mixtapes, which received strong praise from Rolling Stone and Billboard, and collaborated with artists such as Jeremih and Kelela. Her latest single Ratchet Commandments, taken from her forthcoming debut album Think Tink, is her most talked-about yet, and signifies her arrival as a real contender on the US rap scene. You can hear producer Timbaland’s influence, but it doesn’t sound dated, like some of his Empire tracks, which were a weak link in an otherwise excellent show. The new single and video show Tink is fun, vibrant, youthful and outspoken, and most importantly to me, has definite pop star potential.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVgSlGd5mGo]