If You Don’t Know, Then You Need To Know Aminé

There’s this hybrid, innocuous space within music internet where rap, electro and R&B collides. The result is often fast-paced, nimble tongued raps, paired over vibrant futuristic beats with a high, explosive energy. If, you’re a fan of that, then you’re probably well acquainted with Portland, Oregon rapper Aminé , and if you’re not, then now is time to.

Having first caught my attention 18 months ago after remixing Kaytranada’s ‘Not At All’ beat, Aminé embodied that Goldink-esque delivery of soulful, versatile flow, birthed on a steady diet of (I’m almost certain) Andre 3000, but that’s not to say Aminé is a cat. He popped up again on my radar with ‘La Danse’, this time, not a Kaytranada remix, but an actual Kaytranada collab (goes to show you it can pay off, right?).

Fueled by dynamic production, and a slight tinge of disco, the tracks name did exactly what it implied, it made you want to dance. ‘La Danse’ was the lead single from Aminé’s last full length release, ‘Calling Biro’. A collection of 10 tracks featuring production from the likes of Kaytranada, Tek.Lun, Pasqué, boybeatsworld, and Aminé himself, ‘Calling Biro’ had those up tempo, tribal-influenced sounds as well trap and hip-hop vibes. With quick-time flows as well as soulful melodic, verging on singing style, and even a dash of Caribbean influence, Aminé encompassed and resides in that pan-African-American musical space, and needless to say, proved his talents.

This year, the tune you may (or may not) have heard from Aminé is ‘Caroline’. An up-beat, bouncy, fun, cheeky ode dedicated to the songs title-woman, Caroline. But Caroline isn’t just a singular person, like OutKast’s on ‘Roses’, Caroline is just a dedication to all the fly-woman who have caught Aminé’s eye(s). In terms of a single though, what’s made ‘Caroline’ so successful is the happy-go-lucky, sing-a-long quality of the track, and stylistically Aminé doesn’t stick to one style throughout. It’s unpredictable, summery and most importantly, fun.

Now, if ‘Caroline’ isn’t enough to get you hitting PLAY on Aminé’s back catalog, then I’m not sure what is. Hit play on ‘Calling Biro’ above, and get your groove on in the self-directed video for ‘Caroline’.