Irelands’ YINYANG Raps and Rocks Through Pandemic
There was a time when hip-hop was a nameless artform, created by the young residents of the slums of the South Bronx, in New York during the 1970s, namely Afrika Bambaataa, DJ Kool Herc, and Grandmaster Flash; the Godfathers of Hip-Hop. For decades, I watched as it grew and spread to other New York neighborhoods, other states, and eventually, to other countries. I don’t pretend to be particularly knowledgeable of hip-hop outside of the United States, though I am aware of a few. It’s unfortunate because you would expect that someone familiar with various languages and cultures would know. I am, however, pleased to learn that there are hip-hop artists in many places in the world, and why I’m delighted to be able to interview Lauren Hannan, better known as YINYANG who hails from Northern Ireland.
Since the days of RUN-DMC’s Rock Box, hip-hop has gone through many transformations, incorporating a number of musical genres. Despite hybrid hip-hop being a thing for a long time, it still seems to be relegated closer to the underground, while hip-hop itself has been mainstream since the 1990s. Whether the art form reaches commercial status or not, people are going to keep making it and their audiences are still going to listen regardless. YINYANG has released four incredible songs that make you want more. Her music was one of the many artists who helped me mentally endure the pandemic. YINYANG’s elocution is replete with womanly thunder and grace. She seamlessly blends various musical styles into her own brand of inimitability. Her steady ascent, this writer sincerely hopes, should propel her to the status she so rightly deserves.
I’ve long known that hip-hop had pretty much reached the four corners of the globe, but, having listened to hip-hop from its beginnings until now, I’ve not once heard of a rapper from Ireland.
There is such an expanded scene in hip-hop, it’s for everyone who wants to be involved. I don’t even know if I'm actually hip-hop or some weird sub-genre I’ve made, to be honest, it’s a bit of a mixed bag.
I’ve never felt like hip-hop has any boundaries. I love the evolution and history of hip-hop, and if anything I just feel excited to be part of the genre that influences me so heavily and is so diverse.
I feel honored to interview the first Irish rapper I’ve ever known, and it’s someone who’s actually really good at it.
Aw, thank you!
Where in Ireland are you from, if I may ask?
I’m from just outside Belfast in Northern Ireland, and yes I am a leprechaun and I love potatoes if we’re getting stereotypical. (laughter)
I know that you currently reside in England, but I must know, how big is hip hop in Ireland? Has it been that way for a long time?
There are some killer hip-hop artists in Ireland and Northern Ireland! I’m not sure how long it’s been that way, but at the moment there’s so much talent coming out of home and it makes me so proud to be from there and excited for the other artists.
You’ve been a hip-hop fan for a while and you’ve mentioned having been inspired by the likes of Little Simz, Sampa The Great, and M.I.A. Who are you listening to these days?
Yeah definitely! I love them because firstly their music slaps, but mostly because they’re strong women who are just doing their own shit their way and killing it.
I’m listening to The Avalanches, James Blake, Nubiyan Twist, Mac Miller, Alewya… these are my recently liked artists on Spotify.
Who, aside from the rappers you've mentioned, has the greatest influence on you?
A weird one but I’d say Quentin Tarantino is a huge influence of mine, there’s something about his creative flair that I froth over. Kill Bill is one of my favorite movies so it was only fitting to call my first song Black Mamba as it’s a deadly snake, but also the lead character’s name and she’s a baddie, in a good way! I just love the wit and destruction in one scene in his movies, and how the music is always perfectly linked to what the character is feeling. That’s something that is really important to me when I'm writing, matching the instrumentation to capture how I feel.
Hip-hop has been misogynistic almost since the beginning and it’s gotten so bad since then. Do you have a problem with misogyny in rap music on your side of the pond?
Misogyny is a problem, I don’t really listen to any artists that would be misogynistic, or I’d actively avoid it. I don’t think I’ve experienced this so I can’t comment. My experience so far has been positive.
You’re actually more than just a rapper, your songs (as you mentioned earlier) are an eclectic mix of various musical styles. Where did that idea come from?
It wasn’t so much an idea rather than something that just happened, I write music that I like, so naturally, things that influence me and styles I enjoy will creep in and that’s what’s happened almost by accident. It's also really fun to experiment!
You’re one of the many artists and business people who I’ve spoken to in recent months who began their careers or businesses during the pandemic. What in particular inspired you to pursue music, especially during that period?
I’ve always been playing music and was in bands in the past because I couldn’t produce music at all before 2020 and every time I tried, I’d get so pissed off that it sounded bad, so I’d scrap the idea. When the pandemic happened I lost my job, so I had a lot of time on my hands to force myself to learn. It took ages and I started with GarageBand because it was free just turning things on and playing around to see what everything did. Now I still use GarageBand and I don’t reckon I’ll change until I really, really need to - in the producer world this is a cardinal sin I believe.
Your songs are danceable, but you haven’t done party songs. The songs are either introspective, about other people, or about life in general. It’s not at all a bad thing, but I’m curious to know if you ever plan on just wigging out and making something just because.
Aw yeah of course! My taste in music is super varied so I’m keen to crawl into other genres and experiment so who knows what could happen.
How difficult was it for you to record music while the world was on fire? Or, was it difficult at all?
It was pretty hard, to be honest.
I record at Studio Six in London with my producer Tom and I had to move back to my parents’ house because I had lost my job and couldn’t afford my place in London anymore. Not being in London near the studio for 8 months was really hard and having to travel to London dragging a suitcase with me everywhere and do really long days in a row in the studio just to keep on top of it was tiring for us but it never feels like it's not worth it and with Tom, it’s always super fun.
What kind of equipment did you use in the recording and production of your four singles?
We use all sorts - a Moog, guitars, live cello, and our favorite plugin, Little Alter Boy.
When I purchased “Black Mamba” from BandCamp, I learned that there was quite a bit of talk about it. How did it feel when the accolades started to pour in? I mean, the BBC is huge! Yes?
Aw, thank you for the Bandcamp purchase! It was my first release and I got incredibly lucky. They’ve been really good to me. Everyone has!
I think now on Spotify my most played song is Bloodhound/Earthbound, which was the second release!
Do you have anything planned for this year, say, more recording?
Yeah, we have a song called Happy Money which will be coming out next month! Then a few more tracks out this year and finally playing some live shows which I am so excited for.
Oh also hoping to launch a fashion aspect of Yinyang too, which is buzzy.
For more YINYANG, follow the link to her site. Follow her updates on Instagram.
