The hip-hop scene in Iceland is boomin’. From big names like Sturla Atlas to newbies like JoíPé, it seems like every Adidas-wearing boy is either a rapper or a rap fan. It’s true though—new artists come out of the woodwork on the daily and since everyone’s watching the scene, talented acts can quickly receive hype and attention.
Take, for example,16-year-old duo “Hrnnr & Smjölvi.” After putting out their first song, “Rúllum á Bílum” (“Roll Up In The Car”), they started getting asked to play gigs. That’s right, first song. (The song is awesome, by the way.)
But you might be wondering: How do these guys start out? If you’re a nobody from Hveragerði with only 20 friends on Facebook, how do you get the world to listen to those sick beats you just made on Ableton?
This is where Facebook group “Nýtt Íslenskt Hiphop” (“New Icelandic Hip-Hop”) comes in. The group functions as a message board for new songs and videos. Everyone from famous kids like Emmsjé Gauti to unknown Soundcloud rappers put their tracks on the group. Though it’s mostly videos or songs, occasionally people post weird rants and call-outs that are pretty entertaining. The group also holds a poll at the end of the year to determine things like “Best Artist,” “Best Song”, etc.
For us at the Grapevine, Nýtt Íslenskt Hiphop is good to cruise when we’re trying to hit up new songs for our playlists and articles. We’ve gotten a lot from the group, and while it’s true that Nýtt Íslenskt Hiphop is currently inundated with a ton of SoundCloud rappers… what’s so wrong with SoundCloud rappers? It’s not like any Icelandic SoundCloud rappers start their songs like, “Y’all know who dis is, it’s ya boy MC Þórgrímur.” Nah, that’s just Americans.
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