Swet Shop Boys – Zayn Malik
Swet Shop Boys is a partnership between Indian-American rapper Heems (formerly of Das Racist) and British-Pakistani MC Riz (Riz Ahmed, best known for acting in The Night Of, Rogue One, and Girls). Over an irresistible beat by Redinho, Riz spits fire like “They say why is Rizy chattin' about race/ Why he breathin' bout air just like Hari K. say” and “Look Zayn Malik's got more than eighty virgins on him/ There's more than one direction to get to paradise”. Meanwhile Heems is content to play the goofball while still smuggling in an Indian history lesson– “I am an idiot, I want big things/ Akbar, Jahangir, I like big kings”. It’s a tightrope walk between impassioned political commentary and braggadocio, and as a bonus it absolutely bangs.
Tony Stamp
