Nata | ‘Rookie of the Year’
“Though I’m moving like a vet, still rookie of the year.”
This illmatic line rapped by New Jersey’s top lyricist, Nata, gives us a sneak peek of her musical dexterity.
Undeniably nice with the pen and flows, Nata proves time and time again that she’s in the hip-hop game for the long haul. Her verbal palette is full of positive affirmations, life lessons, and oftentimes, transparency. Giving cred to the Most High, she uses His guidance to lead her PSA’s. Likewise, the rapstress orchestrates her wordplay in means of bringing awareness to all walks of life.
“My sound is to provide an experience,” she adds. “I didn’t want to just be a “rapper,” I wanted to create real art and a sound that last. Overall, the message I want to establish in my music is perseverance, faith, self-awareness, and positivity. I feel a real urge of obligation to speak for the youth and so forth.”
Possessing the skill of creating smooth punchlines, refined hooks, and articulate wordplay is a feat within itself. One that’s second nature to the hip-hop goddess.
Nata is a one-of-a-kind individual who identifies with being “the girl next door but also a hidden gem.”
“She’s a wordsmith with purpose. Moreover, her sound takes you to a place of nostalgia and gives you that “old feeling” back again,” Nata expresses.
Believe it or not, Nata got involved in the music scene two years ago, but she’s been freestyling on Instagram for three years. In the past, she dabbled in free-writing lyrics to songs and poetry. But her love for music, moreso hip-hop, was immense. Deep down, she knew that music was her calling. And so she started to pursue it.
“My last year in college was when I realized I wanted to rap and take music in general seriously,” she continues. “With all the studying I’ve done on good music, authentic hip hop, and other genres, the process of making music came easy and was like art.”
In the beginning stages of her career, Nata was finding her purpose. Initially, she thought she wasn’t supposed to be involved in the music industry because of her background and shyness. But instead of turning a cheek, Nata faced her fears head-on. Right before heading to the studio, she needs lukewarm water, her notebook, and her engineer.
“I knew that all those factors were tied into the fear of just pushing the limit against the odds. Since I was small, I’ve known that music was extremely important to me, and I had to face my fears about it day by day. I walked while scared through my beginning stage, and here I am now.”
She gains inspiration from Jay-Z’s wittiness, Missy Elliott’s creativity, and Lauryn Hill’s content matter. Ultimately, the three rap legends have helped her shape her sound.
Her new project, Rookie of The Year, puts her musical technique on full display. Featuring a myriad of beats that garner inspiration from boom-bap, R&B, hip-hop, and jazz, Nata’s first full-length album explores her experiences thus far in the music industry as a femcee. In hindsight, she gets a feel of what it’s like to be in the limelight, discovering that all that glitters isn’t gold. Over time, she receives a self reality check from Him. This sudden revelation prompts her to find her way back.
She explains more about the message, saying,
“It sheds light on that journey of getting lost in the glory of self and how harmful it could be. Then eventually, the album shows the deciding factor of going back into humbleness/God. The prodigal daughter.”
Rookie of The Year took a year to complete. The “Art Thou” artist made sure to strategize and checked to see if everything sounded good. Before adding lyrics, she browsed through beats and found the ones that would fit perfectly on the record. Her features did their verses last year before the project was completed.
The two tracks that I will be analyzing today are “Let It Go (feat. Cyph Two)” and “94.” For car tunes, she recommends “La Familia.“
She says, “It’s a smooth song that rides out perfectly. The balance between the singing and rapping puts you at ease. The Spanish guitar on the beat is *chefs kiss*.”
“Let It Go (feat. Cyph Two)” carries a violin-driven R&B beat that closely resembles Timbaland’s musical styling. The song is backed by Nata’s honeyed register. Lyrically, Nata reflects on a bittersweet relationship and decides that it’s time to call it quits. Her reasoning for the split is because “We was spending all this time in different phases/Different time, I suppose.”
Afterward, she apologizes for the sudden news, but this is a decision she ultimately wants to make. Still, there is a possibility that they might cross paths again.
Crossing over to her prolific rhymes, she spits,
“Love is cautious, so I forfeit for your state of mind/Keep it kind and just say ‘it’s fine’/Heard you say you ain’t see the signs/But it’s probably best you stay behind.”
Cyph Two speaks from the male perspective, saying
“I hate the way things been since things ended/Ain’t quite exact to me/Can’t call it/Something lack to me.”
He also admits that the break-up came abruptly. Then Cyph Two begins to think back on the time they shared. He concludes that he’s not giving up on their love.
Cyph Two delivers, “Swipe left, swipe right, just know you’ll be the right match for me.”
“94′” has an instrumental that pairs boom-bap with jazz. During this track, Nata effortlessly flexes her lyrical muscles. The main message behind “94” is that she remains true to herself and those she loves despite her new status. Taking a laid-back approach, she spits,
“Pick a sport. My cleats fitted like low-tops/New state of art yet still reppin’ that old block.“
She also addresses naysayers, saying that she’s unbothered by what they think about her.
“An opinion could never startle my pay rate,” she raps.
Towards the end, we hear a chopped and screwed version of some of the song’s chorus.
For the upcoming artists out there, Nata leaves you with this word of advice:
“Perfect doesn’t exist. It’s okay to just breathe and let yourself be creative without strain. Don’t be hard on yourself. The best is yet to come.”
Stay tuned! Nata has a lot more in store.