This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/mar/25/fetty-wap-trap-queen-new-jersey-rap-hip-hop

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Fetty Wap: New Jersey's trap king vies for rap throne with Trap Queen Fetty Wap: New Jersey's trap king vies for rap throne with Trap Queen
(35 minutes later)
Trap Queen, the combustable single from Patterson, New Jersey, rapper Fetty Wap (real name Willie Maxwell), represents everything that’s great about the YouTube era. It’s a homegrown product that has flourished organically, succeeding almost entirely on the strength of the artist’s original sound and vision. Trap Queen, the combustible single from Paterson, New Jersey, rapper Fetty Wap (real name Willie Maxwell), represents everything that’s great about the YouTube era. It’s a homegrown product that has flourished organically, succeeding almost entirely on the strength of the artist’s original sound and vision.
That last bit is not a dumb crack about the artist’s left eye, which he lost to childhood glaucoma. But his disability has certainly heightened interest in the MC, who emerged from nowhere (well, 20 miles outside of Manhattan) to sign with Lyor Cohen’s 300 Entertainment late last year. Fetty Wap has since received an endorsement from Kanye, and a remix from Fabolous and French Montana. But make no mistake, those artists are all piggybacking off of Fetty Wap’s success, not the other way around.That last bit is not a dumb crack about the artist’s left eye, which he lost to childhood glaucoma. But his disability has certainly heightened interest in the MC, who emerged from nowhere (well, 20 miles outside of Manhattan) to sign with Lyor Cohen’s 300 Entertainment late last year. Fetty Wap has since received an endorsement from Kanye, and a remix from Fabolous and French Montana. But make no mistake, those artists are all piggybacking off of Fetty Wap’s success, not the other way around.
I first heard Trap Queen at R&B singer Jacquees’s show in north St Louis county on Valentine’s Day, where I was one of few attendees who wasn’t a black high school girl (it’s a long story). Between sets the DJ kept returning to Trap Queen, which electrified the crowd every time (it had about 7m YouTube views then, and now has more than 25m). It’s a revelation because it sounds simultaneously familiar and exotic, both the echoing, minor-chord synths and Fetty Wap’s digitally-enhanced, highly-melodic singing, which is, incidentally, more interesting than his rapping. There’s something of a Caribbean Island influence here as well. Producer Tony Fadd – also a virtual unknown – deserves much credit as the presumed architect of the song’s dynamic sound. I first heard Trap Queen at R&B singer Jacquees’s show in north St Louis county on Valentine’s Day, where I was one of few attendees who wasn’t a black high school girl (it’s a long story). Between sets the DJ kept returning to Trap Queen, which electrified the crowd every time (it had about 7m YouTube views then, and now has more than 25m). It’s a revelation because it sounds simultaneously familiar and exotic, both the echoing, minor-chord synths and Fetty Wap’s digitally enhanced, highly melodic singing, which is, incidentally, more interesting than his rapping. There’s something of a Caribbean Island influence here as well. Producer Tony Fadd – also a virtual unknown – deserves much credit as the presumed architect of the song’s dynamic sound.
Trap Queen’s story sounds familiar on first blush – drug dealer cooks drugs and makes money. But there’s something fresh about focusing on the titular lady at the stove. “Every girl wants to be a trap queen now, but how you gonna cook crack when you can’t even cook breakfast?” became a meme on Instagram. Pretty women cooking dope on film has been in pop culture at least since New Jack City (and probably long before), but Trap Queen succeeds as an oddly-touching love story. Trap Queen’s story sounds familiar on first blush – drug dealer cooks drugs and makes money. But there’s something fresh about focusing on the titular lady at the stove. “Every girl wants to be a trap queen now, but how you gonna cook crack when you can’t even cook breakfast?” became a meme on Instagram. Pretty women cooking dope on film has been in pop culture at least since New Jack City (and probably long before), but Trap Queen succeeds as an oddly touching love story.
The song’s video, meanwhile, was made before Cohen and his publicity budget came on board. Perhaps for that reason it has a strong vérité quality to it. Rather than simply flashing stacks of cash and fancy cars (though there’s that, too), the video shows him and his queen in a grimy apartment, as well as locals amassed on the sidewalk out front, an old man getting his hair braided. It’s not as cinematic as Juvenile’s Ha video, but it’s got a similar feel.The song’s video, meanwhile, was made before Cohen and his publicity budget came on board. Perhaps for that reason it has a strong vérité quality to it. Rather than simply flashing stacks of cash and fancy cars (though there’s that, too), the video shows him and his queen in a grimy apartment, as well as locals amassed on the sidewalk out front, an old man getting his hair braided. It’s not as cinematic as Juvenile’s Ha video, but it’s got a similar feel.
All of this helps explain why music writers have gone bonkers for the song, specifically rap critics from middle-class backgrounds like myself, who, perhaps to a fault, tend to enjoy artists who bring to life the inner-city struggle that we’ve never experienced.All of this helps explain why music writers have gone bonkers for the song, specifically rap critics from middle-class backgrounds like myself, who, perhaps to a fault, tend to enjoy artists who bring to life the inner-city struggle that we’ve never experienced.
Fetty Wap’s moment is happening right now. He played a well-received South By Southwest set; even a Village Voice writer who found Trap Queen “gimmicky” walked a half mile to see the show. The MC told USA Today that he no longer has to wait outside when he arrives at clubs. A mixtape is on the way. It’s tempting to suggest he could be a one-hit wonder, but I suspect he’s got more in store. After all, his voice is unique, which is an undeniable asset in hip-hop. Fetty Wap’s moment is happening right now. He played a well-received South by Southwest set; even a Village Voice writer who found Trap Queen “gimmicky” walked a half-mile to see the show. The MC told USA Today that he no longer has to wait outside when he arrives at clubs. A mixtape is on the way. It’s tempting to suggest he could be a one-hit wonder, but I suspect he’s got more in store. After all, his voice is unique, which is an undeniable asset in hip-hop.
Perhaps most importantly, his aesthetic is singular. He’s clearly more raw than your average rapper and more committed to his own ideas. In an era of artists intent on glamorising themselves in the most clichéd ways possible, he somehow seems to offer honesty. Perhaps most importantly, his aesthetic is singular. He’s clearly more raw than your average rapper and more committed to his own ideas. In an era of artists intent on glamorising themselves in the most cliched ways possible, he somehow seems to offer honesty.