Rich Chigga Previews New Song “Who That Be”

Earlier this month, 16-year-old Asian rapper Rich Chigga emerged onto the scene in a rather surprising and subversive fashion. A video was uploaded to YouTube showing rappers of schools both old and new reacting to Chigga's "Dat $tick" music video with many involved, Cam'ron and Ghostface Killah among them, expressing awe at the young rapper's flow and vocal tone. “This shit fire. I’m bout to sign this nigga,” Meechy Darko of the Flatbush Zombies said.

Now, the up-and-comer known more formally as Brian Imanuel, is teasing his next drop, a song titled "Who That Be.” In the above Instagram video, he's seen sporting some sort of gold medallion, rapping along as the track plays from his laptop. The lyrics to the bass-heavy track aren't entirely audible, but one line seems to go, "You don't want to fuck with me, hit the streets / Run up on me, you gon end up in the sea."

One of the many beautiful aspects of hip-hop is that tomorrow’s star can look nothing like today’s, and where they come from can be ever-changing. While Rich Chigga has worked up a buzz with the aforementioned reaction video, his next releases will prove whether or not he has any staying power. Ghostface seemed eager to jump on the remix to "Dat $tick," and a co-sign of that sort would go a long way in legitimizing the youngster.

The line between paying homage to the genre and committing cultural appropriation can be thin at times, as Ohio’s Slim Jesus proved last year. Check Rich Chigga's Instagram post above for a preview of what else he has in store.

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