Kilamanzego | photo by Manny Arocho | courtesy of the artist
Kilamanzego chops up a Tierra Whack favorite on her new single “red light green light.”
If you’ve ever caught Philly rapper Tierra Whack in concert, you probably walked away with the hook to “Toe Jam” rooted in your noggin; “CRACK KILLS IF IT DON’T GETCHA WHACK WILL.” The song had the same effect on Philadelphia soundscaper and beatmaker Kilamanzego, who chopped up the hook and folded it into her latest musical collage, “red light green light.”
The song spans a lot of worlds; while the booming bass of its high-drama opening is pure trap, its melodic tones and textures draw on 8-bit electronica, and the rhythm pulses in a manner that’s not quite aggressive, but definitely something in that direction. Commanding? Arresting? Assertive? Whatever the adjective, it’s a body-moving contrast to Kila’s more atmospheric, ambient-leaning expanses we’ve been hearing of late — which we’re also into, but we’re totally digging this additional hue added to her sonic palette.
You can hear Whack’s voice in the mix at the minute-and-five mark, and had the track notes on Soundcloud not tipped us off, I might not have picked up on the source, since her sample is so wildly transformative. Listen to “red light green light.” below and see Kilamanzego live this Saturday at the All Mutable Summer Jam at PhilaMOCA; tickets and more information can be found at the XPN Concert Calendar.
https://soundcloud.com/kilamanzego/kilamanzego-red-light-green-light