Words by

Hannah Jane Cohen

Photo by

Berglaug Petra Garðarsdóttir

Take a magic hat, pour in some trap, some arthouse rap, some heavy beats, some balloons, and add a touch of punk and way too much sugar. Voilá: you have HRNNR,  the most offbeat figure in the Icelandic hip-hop scene.

HRNNR, aka Hrannar Valur Ragnarsson, is, at only 18, completely one-of-a-kind. With lyrics that manage to walk the line between freakin’ funny and bizarrely genius, his new album ‘Velkomin í teitið mitt’ (‘Welcome To My Party’) is something to experience. We sat down with him to hear how it came together.

The title: ‘Velkomin í teitið mitt’ (‘Welcome To My Party’)

The picture for the album is just me having a party just by myself so the title is just me inviting everyone to my wicked party.

1. Skil ekki neitt! (‘I Understand Nothing!’)

My friends Smjörvi and Anton and I were just chilling at my place and we started to make a beat. After some hours went by, we decided to just go to the studio and record some vocals for it. We were just fucking around but we ended with the first part of the song and then finished it a week later. The song is about not understanding anything and having nothing work for us.

2. Gervitungl! (‘Satellite!’)

‘Gervitung!’ was the first song we started working on for the album. Smjörvi and I had been listening to Rae Sremmurd a lot at the time and we just started to freestyle over the beat. It ended up with us flexing about how we have the whole universe around our waists and stuff.

3. AfturÁbak! (‘Backwards!’)

This song is just one big freestyle. I just rapped something into the mic over an old beat Smjörvi and I made a long time ago.

4. Bara hér! (‘Just Here!’)

‘Bara hér!’ is the first personal song I wrote. At the time I wrote it, I was just so busy with school and I was losing hope in everything. I got so stressed out on like tiny things I shouldn’t be stressed by and I just wanted to chill at home by myself and not see anyone. After I wrote the song, I got kind of relieved and everything was sort of easier. So the song is about me talking to myself and telling myself not to be stressed, I don’t know lol.

5. Kem inn! (‘Come In!’)

This is again just some freestyle over an old beat. The lyrics aren’t about anything. It’s just me screaming, “I go in and go right back out!”

6. Strax! (‘Now!’)

Yet another freestyle over an old beat, my dude.

7. Ég held það bara! (“I Just Think So!”)

Smjörvi and I were just messing around making a beat and Smjörvi started to sing in a high pitch, “Ég held það bara,” which means, “I just think so,” or something. I just got the idea for the song then. It’s about us saying stuff that might not be true but we just think it’s true. Then Dadykewl said he wanted to be on the song, and Smjörvi, and I said of course dude!