The project has been over a decade in the making and meanwhile, the emcee has become best known for the viral freestyles she’s been putting out since 2001. Her sound combines style, flow, and unique tone and is a fusion of her London upbringing and Nigerian heritage.
The tape is a mature collection of songs and includes a feature from Jorja Smith on the track “My Sister,” exhibiting the gritty storytelling that Shaybo is well known for. The song references overcoming a bad relationship and speaks directly to the victims of domestic abuse. The video for the song is out now.
Wale also makes an appearance on the project on the song “No Worries” as do Haile and Dreamdoll on the previously released collabs “Friendly” and “Broke Boyz” respectively.
The Nigerian-born London rapper is one of the nicest to come out of the U.K. Shaybo started rapping at 13 years old and hasn’t stopped since. And although yet to release an official album she has a vast catalog of work in her collection.
“People think I’ve come into the music industry and just blown overnight,” she says in an interview with HighSnobiety. “It’s taken me 11 years of making songs, people taking advantage of my dream, having the door slammed in my face, trusting the wrong people.”
Speaking on the title of her album and its namesake TV series she says, “When I watch [the protagonist] Teresa Mendoza on Queen of the South, for me, it’s about a woman who was incredibly naïve, who literally managed to boss her way up in a room full of egos and men and rivalry and everything, and she managed to get to the top… that’s me.”
Shaybo took to Instagram to share some scenes from her listening party.
Shaybo opens the tape with, “I feel like you lot don’t understand how much I take my art seriously.” The project is a testament to just how serious she is.
Have a look at Shaybo as a very young rapper confidently freestyling in London’s Piccadilly Circus.
And check out GRM EXCLUSIVE: HOW SHAYBO BECAME THE ‘QUEEN OF THE SOUTH’ to learn more about the U.K rap star and her journey to becoming “Queen of The South.”