This past Friday, Polaris Music Prize-shortlisted rapper DijahSB released their new album The Flower That Knew, out now via Lowly. To celebrate the album release, DijahSB is also sharing the record’s focus track “Back Outside.” Listen to The Flower That Knew HERE.
The Toronto-based artist raps with a simultaneous levity and gravity throughout The Flower That Knew, as DijahSB speaks about their struggles with money, mental health, and life as a non-binary Black artist with a sense of cleverly-crafted sincerity. On “How R U,” which arrived as the first taste of The Flower That Knew, Dijah raps, “and I’m making it through what I thought was the hard part / got me asking questions like Nardwuar…” over a grimy groove and knocking rhythm. Premiered on Consequence earlier this month, “Don’t Touch!” boasts supremely groovy sounds and a lighthearted, gracefully goofy assertion of their signature confidence and sense of self. As the album opener, “I’m Blooming” serves as the thesis statement, with a mellow beat that allows for focus on DijahSB’s sharply written turns of phrase
On “Back Outside” Dijah’s “feeling strange about everyone being back outside when covid hasn’t gone away and we’re still in a pandemic. It feels dystopian. As if none of it happened in the first place and we just have to move on.”
The Flower That Knew follows their recent Tasty Raps Vol. 2 produced by Clairmont the Second (fans at FADER, Complex, and more), and a string of singles and collaborations with ZZ Ward on “Baby Don’t,” veggi on “EXEPTIONAL” + ‘Lisa Leslie,” Mick Jenkins on “Here to Dance” (whose previous work includes collaborations with the likes of KAYTRANADA, Disclosure, Noname, BADBADNOTGOOD, Ghostface Killah, EarthGang), and more, alongside the earlier 2022 The EP (ft. Keys N Krates, Terrell Morris).
DijahSB’s second full-length album Head Above the Waters delivered the Toronto artist to wider international attention, garnering praise from Clash, Gal-Dem, Fader, Complex, Exclaim, NPR Music, Consequence, OkayPlayer, and more, including Kid Cudi himself. Alongside their Polaris Music Prize nomination, 2021 also saw the emcee named as a finalist for the 2021 SOCAN Songwriting Prize, Canada’s only publicly-voted major songwriting award, for the single “Frontin’ Like Pharrell” from their debut LP, 2020 The Album. With tens of thousands of listeners across streaming platforms and features on popular Spotify playlists including Northern Bars, Fresh Finds, and Fresh Finds Hip Hop, Dijah’s music has also been featured on Hulu’s Single Drunk Female and Crush, Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest, amongst ads for Google, Android, and Crown Royal Whiskey.
The Flower That Knew is out now, buy/stream it here.
Stay connected with DijahSB:
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