Benny Mails Releases Contemporary Hip-Hop Debut ‘Aware’

Benny Mails comes through with swagged out, contemporary Hip-Hop style for his mixtape debut ‘Aware’.

After getting a world premiere on Julie Adenuga’s Beats 1 radio show, the title track from Benny Mails’ debut mixtape – ‘Aware’ (featuring Marika Hackman) and the completed project of the same name are available to stream in full.

Released alongside a 22 minute break dancing short, ‘Aware’ is Benny Mails’ ambitious audio visual debut. Having spent his earlier years dancing contemporary as well as break dancing with B-boy legend Crazy Legs and the Zulu Nation; Mails brings ‘Aware’ full circle as a sound tracked short film. Brought up in the midst of London’s grime scene while, of course being influenced by the likes of  Nas, Mails mingled his love of Hip-Hop and Grime with a home schooling of Funk and Jazz records.

Developing an innate sense for rhythm and flow inevitably filtered into his songwriting, from his dance background as well as the Funk infused Hip-Hop of his earlier days. Typically frank in tone, Mails doesn’t shy away from looking inwards, commenting on the social structures and gentrification that often equal as much damage as they do progress; Mails questions his own perceptions along with a life lived in the future.  Now, Mails assimilates a melting pot of sounds and influences in a style that is complete contemporary Hip-Hop, aware from the bass driven Drill & Trap sounds and more future focused than the often nostalgic boom bap sound.