Up in the Air with Rosa Ree

The tunes and the beat that go with Rosa Ree's defiant and self-loving rap, Up in the Air, will draw warm attention from 'most everyone. This gives her, the "Lyrical Disease", the platform to take on the world, with her brand-building phrase-blocks and un-quotable expletives: "I'm a pinnacle". "Fearless." "Nyota yangu inang'aa". And such. Detractors be damned. The band is her truest army, and follows her every command. It marches invisibly, and provokes animated dancing, in goose-steps with her. All delectably.

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She's already perched on the rooftop. So what's that? This petite rebel-girl from the slopes, foot(prints), of Mt. Kilimanjaro has a notion much, much higher. It's something like levitation that she's probably looking for on the way there: Up, Up, Up in the Air. Something on a grander scale; much more grandiose, even. Her strategy? Her immediate targets? Don't ask the Snarling Lioness!

MUSIC (Tanzania): Rosa Ree's Dow

Dow is Rosa Ree's more than "more of the same" offering. This Tanzanian rap sensation previously (in 2016) gave us that Rap Queen Kong treat titled One Time. It was too hot to handle for many people. A milder version had to be released to preemptively keep the peace, if you like. You can see her no-holds-barred encore earlier this year in Up in the Air, too. But it is Dow which represents a marked enhancement to her craft.

Click to watch the Dow video

So Dow is stylistically so juu, juu zaidi (= so much higher, higher up there). She's more refined and more creative in all important ways: lyrics, dance moves, wardrobe, postures and 'spirit'. The music is more inspired and more enhancing, too. And the band is more adventurous around the all-controlling beat than we've seen before.  

Here is a "Rosary" girl who'd rather not mince words, but is subtly into value/quality addition. And here is a country, Tanzania, which would not have her be not herself. It lets her be. And there are countless folks who love her evolving feline swag and snarl. Yes, swag and snarl. Yes, evolving.