Princess Nokia has proved she contains multitudes with her last two records. Her 2017 hip-hop album 1995 Deluxe debuted to receive several accolades. The rapper surprised fans when she followed up the LP the next year with the emo-rap project A Girl Cried Red. The rapper is gearing up for another release with singles like “Sugar Honey Iced Tea,” and now Nokia has debuted her latest single, “Balenciaga,” with a dizzying music video.
The new track is an analysis of fast fashion and designer clothes in the era of social media. “Dress for myself, I don’t dress for hype / I dress for myself, you dress for the likes,” Nokia raps. In the song, the rapper also says that since the line between streetwear and high fashion is blurring, oftentimes thrift store clothes can look like they are designer.
The video itself, directed by Paulette Agnes Ang, is also a commentary on the frivolous nature of designer clothing. Nokia starts in a Balenciaga jacket and is layered with other designer clothes. As she dances through the street, the rapper begins stripping off each layer of clothing with the help of some friends. Eventually, she arrives at a boutique stark naked.
Princess Nokia spoke about her upcoming album in a recent interview, telling NME:
“I’ve got a hip-hop and soul record coming out, and it’s incredible. It’s probably my best work I’ve ever made so far, which will only last ‘til the next one after that.
It’s a really well composed, thought-out brilliantly musical project. I go back to hip-hop, acoustic, R&B, soul, and there’s some Latin music on it. These lyrics are from the pages of my diary. It’s the diary of a young girl going through heartbreak, loss, betrayal, fame, insecurities, doubt, boundaries, self-care, and more than anything, healing. Healing as a young girl at the start of womanhood. Healing and being honest with everything that I’m feeling and experiencing, and bringing it into poetic light and making it very powerful.”
Watch the video for “Balenciaga” above.
