Following the release of an impressive mixtape ‘92 Degrees’ at the end of last year, Irish rap caviar drill collective, A92, continue to prove why they are the hottest topic. With enough talent and charisma to silence any doubters and a platter of street bangers such as ‘Take It (Yuck)’ and ‘Repeat It’ under their belt this year, A92 continue infiltrating every level of global rap.
The new single ‘Bite’ combines the melody of commercial rap with the bass and pressure of drill, they show why they have broken into charts worldwide. With resident vocalist Andre Fazaz delivering a hook inspired by UKG classic Babycakes, Ksav and BT trade typically slickly delivered battle bars. Produced by 18-year-old Navan native JBJ, who’s earned credit’s on Ivan Dolls’ GRM Daily Dupy, AJ Tracy’s latest project ‘FLU GAME’ and the likes of Rap Man’s ‘Premier League Wrap Up’ alongside catching the attention of UK rappers Mist, Krept & Konan, Headie One and more. This warms up for their 2nd mixtape, set to drop June 2021!
Crashing into the mainstream from their hometown of Drogheda, Ireland (the area code of which gives them their name), the group of seven Irish-Nigerians, namely Offica, Dbo, Ksav, Kebz, BT, Andre Fazaz and Nikz, have gone from local heroes to globally charting phenomenon in a few short months.
Signed to Moves Recordings in May 2020 (following the solo success of Offica on the label), they dropped a string of singles – ‘Who’s On Who’, ‘Duck Duck Goose’, ‘See Me Now’ and ‘A9 Link Up’ – each bigger than the last, building momentum until their major breakthrough came in October 2020; ‘Plugged In Freestyle’. Written and recorded with in half a day and shot as part of the Fumez the Engineer Plugged In freestyle series, the track featured Ksav, Dbo, Kebz and Offica spitting back to back bars over a jumpy drill riddim produced by 16 year old Irish wonderkid Charlie Mockler. Filmed in a couple of takes, this hookless drill freestyle flooded across social media, first in the UK, then beyond. It broke into Spotify’s viral charts in over fifteen countries simultaneously, went wild on Tik Tok, and also raced into the UK and Ireland’s official single charts, breaking into the Top 40 of both – rare enough for a freestyle, let alone one on an indie label, produced by a group of underdog kids fighting to be heard from a forgotten, down-at-heel Irish town.
A92 – https://www.instagram.com/a9ineofficial/
ANDRE – https://www.instagram.com/andrefazaz/
