Rich Brian grows up: Indonesian rapper, formerly known as Rich Chigga, shows mature side on new album
- Rich Brian’s second album The Sailor shows a new side to the young artist whose latest songs paint a more realistic picture of his life
- The album features the likes of Wu-Tang Clan rapper-producer RZA and has an old-school hip-hop vibe
In his latest single, Kids, Indonesian rapper Rich Brian gamely tells Asian youths that they can do what they want: “Might steal the mic at the Grammys just to say we won/ That everyone can make it, don’t matter where you come from.”
At face value, these lyrics offer words of encouragement to Asians wishing to break into the (predominantly white) American entertainment industry. But if you look closer at the songs on his new album, The Sailor, you’ll see just how far this 19-year-old artist has come.
To be fair, Imanuel was then a 16-year-old living in Jakarta who learned English from watching hip-hop videos on YouTube, and had an ironic sense of humour. The nuances of American culture, especially when it comes to cultural appropriation, could be hard to grasp when you are an Asian teen who had never visited, let alone lived, in the United States.
Warning: video contains offensive language
Three years later, and after a name change and an apology, Imanuel has released his second album, showing his growth as an artist and as an individual.
Compared to Dat $tick, Kids paints a more realistic and accurate picture of Imanuel’s life, with the rapper dropping lines about being a professional, having a busy calendar, being cynical about those wanting to get close to him because of his growing fame, and that “[he] used to be the kid, now the kids wanna be [him]”.
The talent spotter who made Indonesian rapper Rich Chigga a big name
In the Kids video, Immanuel takes us on a tour of his hometown of Jakarta, putting a modern, fun, youthful twist on a city that does not always get the best press, ultimately showing it in a positive light for an international audience. Kids has more than 5.4 million views on YouTube.
On “The Sailor”, Rich Brian focuses on a more classic, old-school hip-hop vibe compared to the minimal, stripped-back trap beats he was releasing a couple of years ago. On Rapapapa – featuring Wu-Tang Clan rapper-producer RZA – he channels some of his older Rich Chigga persona. The track does include a few awkward lines about sex, but the song is slick enough to let some of his lyricism slide.
In the track’s outro, RZA offers another powerful, inspirational message – “Keep shinin’, keep suprisin’ and energisin’ the generation/ Keep the 88rising, and risin’ and risin’” – which evokes images of African-American sermons.
Another stand-out track is Where Does The Time Go, featuring Japanese-Australian rapper Joji. Rich Brian almost harmonises with the buttery smooth vocals of his 88rising labelmate, and leaves listeners with a wistful, hopeful feeling, again showing just much he has matured.
The most wholesome (and somewhat unexpected) takeaway from “The Sailor” is that “everyone can make it, don’t matter where you from”. Despite the way Rich Brian rose to fame, he’s now proving that nothing’s more important than living your truth, and that it’s okay to admit when you are wrong.
