The ability to live life confidently and on one’s own terms is at the core of the debut album from London rapper Little Simz. Practically every bar the 21-year-old spits is full of fiery indignation, aimed not just at exposing (and undermining) entrenched social hierarchies, but at the insecurities that might also hold her back.
Her willingness to look inward on dense verses with such focused intensity and technical ambition would be thrilling even if she were content to just stunt on her own wordplay. Other young MCs are forgoing major-label backing – GoldLink and Azealia Banks spring to mind – but what sets Little Simz apart is the exacting way she captures a universal disdain for the whole neo-liberal system through highly specific and personal observations.
Tainted is this album’s most cynical example of this it’s a satire of status obsession that packs the kind of musical variation, playful flow switch-ups and conceptual ambition into four minutes that others require entire albums to convey. Meanwhile, the autobiographical God Bless Mary – addressed to a neighbour she imagines annoyed at her for practising music too loudly – cleverly reminds us that ambition doesn’t always have to come at the expense of empathy.
Top track: Full Or Empty
