Let’s get something straight: The sudden worldwide explosion of club rap would be nowhere without Newark’s Bandmanrill. Though the irresistible combination of hard-hitting rap and party-ready Jersey club beats has been around for a while, the style’s true Big Bang moment didn’t occur until last year, when the comedian-turned-drill rapper released “Heartbroken” with fellow Jersey native McVertt. Since then, Bandmanrill has put Brick City on his back with heater after heater, contributing to a storied local lineage that runs from pioneers like DJ Tameil and the Brick Bandits to viral sensations like Cookiee Kawaii. Meanwhile, rappers from Philly, New York, and France are hopping on club beats; even 35-year-old Canadian superstars are joining in.
On his latest single “Real Hips”—a homage to DJ Jayhood and DJ Joker’s all-time Jersey club classic “Hands on Ya Hips”—Bandman cranks up the heat once again. Club veterans DJ Bake and DJ KilSoSouth revive the decade-old hit by layering thumping bass and hypnotic gun clicks over a lush soul sample, and Bandmanrill raps over their beat with characteristic machine-gun energy. “Bitch I’m touching a M off music/Remember they said I wouldn’t even grad?” he boasts, exuding bravado. In the music video, droves of people show up at the local beach like it’s a block party, shaking their hips and beaming with happiness. “Real Hips” feels like a hot summer day you want to live again.
