Sydney-based rapper Barkaa and neo-soul singer MADAM3EMPRESS have appeared on a new remix of Rico Nasty‘s recent single ‘Magic’.
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Barkaa’s contribution to the track echoes many of the sentiments expressed in the original. “I’m feeling this magic, I want to feel with ya / We already been through the hardest, I wanna heal with ya,” opens her verse.
“You can’t come close to this Blak love / Always was, always will be, and that’s it for us,” concludes the Malyangapa/Barkindji rapper’s section.
The song arrives alongside a lyric video by First Nations creative agency INCOMMON, led by creative director Sofii Mara. Check that out below:
“It was such a mad opportunity to be able to jump on the remix of ‘Magic’ alongside MADAM3EMPRESS and to be able to show a softer side to myself,” Barkaa said in an accompanying statement.
“It took me out of my comfort zone and made me think outside the box which was an experience for me as an artist.”
MADAM3EMPRESS added that it was an “honour to be part of something so monumental in Australian music history,” going on to praise Barkaa’s verse on the remix.
“To have a First Nations woman tell her story while completely and utterly embodying her verse on a new track from one of the most exciting artists coming out of the states right now, is something I am so honoured to be in the mix of,” she continued.
“To have a Black African woman (myself), and a First Nations woman (Barkaa) appear together on a track like ‘Magic’ is a big statement. I hope it will help the world see we have an important culture here – one of colour, one of power and one of womanhood.”
In July, Barkaa released latest single ‘King Brown’, a preview of her forthcoming debut EP ‘Blak Matriarchy’. The rapper released a string of singles throughout 2020, winning the Next Big Thing category at FBi Radio’s Sydney Music, Arts and Culture (SMAC) Awards.
Recently, the rapper used her platform to bring attention to the COVID crisis in the regional, predominantly Aboriginal town of Wilcannia in New South Wales, where she grew up. She was also recently announced as part of the BLAKSOUND First Nations music industry conference, which is being held virtually this month.
MADAM3EMPRESS, meanwhile, has released two new singles so far this year – ‘Locking Eyes’ back in February and ‘Some Type of Way’ in June.
The original version of ‘Magic’ arrived back in June as the first preview of Rico Nasty’s yet-to-be released mixtape ‘Rx’. A second single, ‘Buss’, was released last month. The forthcoming follow-up to Rico’s debut studio album, last year’s ‘Nightmare Vacation’, was co-produced by Dylan Brady of 100 gecs.