If BET is your only source of Hip Hop coverage than I wouldn’t blame you for thinking that Nicki Minaj was the only estrogen filled rappers in the game. A genre once populated by the likes of Latifah, Lyte, Lauryn, Missy, Eve and others now doesn’t seem willing to let the fairer sex shine unless they have multiple personalities and booty shots (allegedly). Dig a little deeper though and you’ll see that there are a crop of femcees grinding to prove that anything the boys can do they can do better. In steps Nitty Scott, MC; a Michigan born, Brooklyn-repping lyricist with her latest offering, The Boombox Diaries, Vol. 1. Not only does Scott have to rep for her gender but also for her state, which has definitely been struggling for relevancy and identity. Can this Brooklyn MC bring the crown back to NY? Let’s get into it.
1. Concrete Roses
Produced by Yuri Beats
I’m always impressed when artists use their opening tracks to make a statement, and that’s exactly what Nitty does on this track. Yuri Beats laces her with a horn-filled beat that not only sounds triumphant, but also sounds New York made as she viciously rips apart haters and doubters and asserts herself into the game. When she rhymes “I’m destined for the best in the name of progress”, you get the feeling that you’re in for something special. GREAT way to start the album.
2. H.O.T
Produced by Illmind
The title of the song is perfect because Nitty comes out blazing. Illmind creates a slick boom bap sound with a nice Missy Elliot sample that gets destroyed. I love how New York the album is sounding as current NY rappers get knocked for pandering to different audiences and not sticking to the original sound. Again, Nitty is a lyrical problem with bars like “We so out of national jack, had to tell em it’s like Iraq when I rap.” The cypher-sounding beat also lets her experiment with her flow, at times over enunciating and other times speeding her flow up. Pure dope right here.
3. Is This Thing On
Featuring Outasight; Produced by 6th Sense
We get more of the raucous New York sound, but whereas the first two beats successfully toed the line between nostalgic and fresh, this one falls into the former, and not in a good way. The beat’s not horrible, but after the first two tracks had my neck almost snapping, this slower track felt really abrupt. Nitty still has the same energy and almost saves the track with her clever wordplay, and guest Outasight sounds at home on the track as well. Not a bad track, but it failed to carry the momentum the first two tracks created. The end of the track also features Nitty sharing insights from her journal as she talks about the grind of traveling. Good track, but kind of disappointing.
4. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Produced by JetAudio
Nitty is on record saying that this is one of her favorite tracks on the EP because of how
personal she was able to get about her feelings on traveling. She goes on to state that this was meant be a look into the life of a working class emcee. While I applaud her opening up and relating to her audience, this track was a underwhelming to me. The mellow vibe and repetitive hook derailed her earnest rhymes and sentiment. Not a skip, but this one felt like filler.
5. Flower Child
Featuring Kendrick Lamar; Produced by Paul Boogie
At the end of the last track we got another glimpse of Nitty’s journal as she opened up about feeling out of place and misunderstood. Who can’t relate to that? This time she hits the mark as she relates to fans the struggles of being an emcee, growing as a women and not compromising who she is to get more fans. The second verse is the perfect mix of lyricism and introspection:
Okay, buffering, creativity suffering
When you bustlin’, hustling for the numbers in
You miss the journey if you climb too fast
The beauty of the struggle when it comes to pass
Amateurs I swear they need to balance it
I want that legendary like Excalibur
Chasing calipers, liberated as a bachelor, traveler
Never fallen victim to these calendars
Uh, rough draft after rough draft
No staff, perfecting all my abstract craft
And now they calling me celebrity
Only thing I give a damn about is my integrity
They play the game like checkers when I’m talking ’bout chess
Tryna do more when they talking ’bout less, I stress
Quantity aint always quality
So let me formulate my prophecy
Kendrick Lamar comes through to do the hook and just like that the album is back on track.
6. No Standing Here
Produced by J57, cuts by DJ Element
If “Flower Child” was Nitty Scott opening up then “No Standing Here” is her unleashing. J57 gives her a simple piano loop and a few cuts by DJ Element. The minimal beat is perfect as it’s meant to not take attention away from Nitty as she spazzes out about a myriad of trials and tribulations from fake friends and label politics to just trying to live life in general. The Nas sample is also a small but effective touch that just makes this track so emotional and raw. By far the most honest track on the album, and easily my favorite.
7. Illuminitty
Produced by AraabMUZIK
We come back to the New York sound as recent go-to producer for DipSet, AraabMUZIK, crafts a pounding beat with a soulful backdrop. Nitty goes back to lyrical annihilation as she raps “…and yo easy bake aint fuckin with the muffin that I got up in my oven.” Wordplay wise Nitty is solid, but after such a raw and powerful track to go back to bragging and boosting just seems out of place. We get another offering from her journal about her thoughts on what the role of an artist is.
8. Dear Diary
Featuring Megan McNeal; Produced by Cassius Clay
Scott tries to return to her introspective side as she enlists Megan McNeal to sing the hook and Cassius Clay slows it down. With a title like Dear Diary I really expected her to continue to delve deeper into who Nitty Scott is and her life. Yet this track felt really forced. It’s as if she went into the song saying, “Okay, I need to make a slow, deep sounding song.” While technically the song is sound, it lacks any real feeling or emotion and feels like it came off an assembly line. SKIP.
9. You’re My Favorite
Featuring Tiara Wiles; Produced by DJ Tedsmooth
Here Nitty does a complete 180 and loses the hard edge and opens up and shows a softer side. This one is definitely bubble gum and glitter, and at first glance may feel out of place on such a hard hitting album. But after a song so cookie cutter and void as Dear Diary, “You’re My Favorite” feels honest and genuine as she gleefully gushes about a crush. I also give Nitty props for being able to create a flirtatious song without being overtly sexual. Not my cup of tea per se, but a much needed feeling of honesty.
10. Auntie Maria’s Crib
Featuring Action Bronson & The Kid Daytona; Produced by Cassius Clay
Nitty trades in the lip gloss and bubblegum from the last track for a blunt and a lighter on this one. Cassius Clay returns and redeems himself with a smooth and funky ode to the sticky as all three show their affection for the herb. Scott more than holds her own with the boys and shows that she can puff and pass with the best of them:
Ok this hookah got me cooler than the Buddha
Rap barracuda think it deeper than the scuba
Fuck me up in Cuba
Me and my auntie Maria, she doing Santeria
While I be blastin’ a classic up in the galleria
You know my style, go for miles over miles
Ain’t no tellin’ what a crook is cookin’ up to see him cook
Hit you with the remix, got your man shook
Burnin’ higher burnin’, yea I wrote the damn book
French manicure crushing up the sticky
Very trippy type to get the secret out of pickie
We tight fly so, they know how I go
Only gettin’ higher them days that when we wild go
Causin’ me stress, curve you like the letter S
Take a hit to the chest and I pass the gun to the west
Yea, Nitty, Bronson, tone is so gifted
Put the flame to the bang and get lifted
I’m personally not an indulger but I can appreciate a good weed track when done right, and this one will have you reaching for your baggie.
11. Skippin’ Clouds
Produced by Yuri Beats
So the previous track was not a fluke as Nitty really enjoys getting lifted. This time she also talks about Vicodin and other prescription drugs and she goes off into a drug induced trip. Yuri Beats returns and creates a trip hop track for the stoner set. This is the second time on the album that Nitty has gone back to the well for a concept and not done as good a job as she did the previous time. Ganja heads may feel this one but this is a SKIP for me.
12. A Beautiful Struggle
Featuring Soul Khan & Akie Burress; Produced by DJ Goo
We close the album with another posse cut as Nitty reflects on her current position in the game and making the affirmation that she will not quit and continue forging along. More of the same topics are covered from previous tracks, but she manages to spit her bars with spirit and conviction. Good beat, nice hook, solid bars. A good way to close out the album.
Bottom Line:
Without question Nitty Scott MC is one of the nicest MC’s in the game right now, male or female. Her bars are dope and she can jump on a track and straight body a beat. She can also share a track and go word for word with almost anyone. But while she can definitely spit a 16, or 32 for that matter, there is more to the game than just being nice on the note pad. While bragging and boosting are basic and essential parts to the art of rhyming, there is more to crafting a song. Some of the greatest lyricists have been crippled with the inability to actually craft full-fledged songs with varying concepts. Some of these songs felt like extended rap battles without an opponent. There were also times when it felt like Nitty was just making songs to prove that she can create that style of song.
However, it must be remembered that this is an EP and not an album, which means it doesn’t necessarily have to be as cohesive as an LP should. The Boombox Diaries, Vol. 1 sounds like a sample tray of various flows and sounds that showcases a young and hungry artist that is eager to prove herself. Don’t be fooled by the pretty face and smile, you’ll quickly be on your backside after being lyrically assaulted by an emcee who’s gunning for the top, male AND female.
