Angel Haze – Running New York

by: Joseph Johnson

There have been a lot of songs dedicated to the Big Apple, and rapper Angel Haze has just added another one to the list. “New York” is powerful in its simplicity and serves as a nice introduction to this young talent.

The Adrienne Nicole-directed video is Haze’s debut, and follows our masked protagonist as she stalks through the streets and tunnels of New York, finally ending up at the studio. The clip shows that both director and rapper are artists willing to work outside the confines of popular music in order to create a product that is artistic and interesting.

Sampling Gil Scott-Heron could have been disastrous, but the minimal clicks and rumbles of the production combine beautifully with the samples to make the perfect backdrop, against which Haze flexes her lyrical muscles. She doesn’t disappoint in the lyrics department either, with a mesmerising flow and punchy lyrics that merge seamlessly with the soulful hook, in which she proclaims: “I run New York.” Ambitious maybe, but if “New York” and “Werkin’ Girls” are anything to go by; her claim might soon be confirmed as truth. And lest us not forget, one rapper who made such a claim in the past was a certain Jay-Z – look where that ambition took him!

Angel Haze’s Reservation is available now to download.