The new RAP SH!T mixtape is a showcase for the breadth and diversity of talented women taking over the rap game in 2023. Compiled and released by Raedio, the “audio everywhere” company, the mixtape combines original music created for the series and performed by lead characters Shawna & Mia with brand new songs from some of the hottest and most original rappers around. Recently released singles include “No Panties,” a gleefully raunchy banger by Sexyy Red, and “He Can’t Reach,” a stuff-strutting cross-regional collab between NYC’s Maiya The Don and Dallas’s Enchanting. Overall, the album has a brash, party-positive atmosphere, with songs that take inspiration from many styles, with a particular emphasis on the sounds of Miami, where the show takes place.
On “We Live,” Rico Nasty and Cleotrapa take turns annihilating a skittering beat by Bankroll Got It, while Lady London, Connie Diiamond, and Hood Brat run roughshod above a creeping instrumental on the sinister “No Time.” Enchanting proves to be an adept collaborator, going toe-to-toe with Kaliii on “Run It Up” and Omeretta The Great on “Want No Beef.” Slimeroni and Aleza inject some Memphis-flavored attitude with the campily aggressive “On Site.” “Kick Rocks” is a take-no-prisoners posse cut, combining the talents of Guapdad 4000, NCognita, Cam & China, Ben Reilly, and more, as they attempt to top each others’ disrespectful bars. Featuring additional appearances from Lady London, TeaMarr, Cozz, O.G. Kurb, and more, and production from the likes of Danja, Bankroll Got It, and HitKidd, the new mixtape is a love letter to the women in rap who are changing the music world just by being themselves.
Raedio is committed to propelling the most culturally relevant series and projects and spotlighting not only emerging artists, but the contributors behind the scenes that make these amazing songs possible. The RAP SH!T Season 2 mixtape originated at Raedio’s popular writing camp series Camp Raedio at Noise Nest studios in Los Angeles, which brought in writers and producers from across the rap map to collaborate in unique combinations and let their creative juices flow. For the mixtape artwork, Raedio paid tribute to the classic cover of Midnight Marauders by A Tribe Called Quest, one of the few covers in history that highlights the creatives making magic behind the scenes. Raedio highlights the unique camp in a series of mini-docs, out now on Raedio’s YouTube channel, released as a companion to RAP SH!T Season 2 and its soundtrack.
Through the story of Shawna and Mia, RAP SH!T Season 2 explores the delicate balancing act that female rappers face: how can they achieve their commercial goals while still maintaining authenticity and continuing to have fun? The Season 2 Mixtape is full of songs by artists who are figuring out their own answers to that key question, as they mold the industry in their own image.
RAP SH!T returns for its second season on November 9th, only on Max.
© 2023, Seth "Digital Crates" Barmash. All rights reserved.
