EP: Nef The Pharaoh & ShooterGang Kony – Vice Versa
Two Rising California Stars Show Off Their Hard-Hitting Bars in a New L.A. Leakers-Premiered EP
11.9.2018
Critical Praise:
“It’s been nearly three years since Nef The Pharaoh took the Bay Area by storm with his breakout hit ‘Big Tymin’.’ Since then, under the tutelage of E-40, the South Vallejo rapper has become an ambassador of the region in his own right, championing artists like SOB X RBE, OMB Peezy, and others.” – The FADER
20 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2016 – Neffy Got Wings (#3) – FACT
2016 was the West Coast’s time to shine, and few rappers shined as brightly as Nef – FACT
“Neffy Got Wings is the album of the week” – Stereogum
“…the best rapper from Vallejo since the last great rapper from Vallejo” – Jeff Weiss
“…as a rapper, [Nef the Pharaoh] lets the energy lead and the bars follow, boasting and flexing with the kinds of memorable banalities that make up some of hip-hop’s best yet least-celebrated moments.” –Pitchfork
“Nef The Pharaoh is the Bay Area’s next up.” – HotNewHipHop
“Nef the Pharaoh runs neck-and-neck with Kodak Black as the most promising up-and-coming rapper who can’t yet rent a car.” – SPIN
“There may be no rapper working right now who brings more good cheer and positive vibes than Vallejo’s Nef the Pharaoh” – Noisey
The EP:
Immersed since birth in one of the country’s most robust and idiosyncratic hip-hop traditions, 23-year-old Vallejo, CA-native Nef The Pharaoh and 17-year-old ShooterGang Kony, from Sacramento, embody the spirit of Northern California hip-hop. Colliding for a fun-loving and hard-hitting lyricfest, Nef & Kony showcase their best bars in Vice Versa, their new EP, premiered by L.A. Leakers. Two of Northern California’s most accomplished young lyricists, Nef and Kony display an easy chemistry throughout the project, as Nef’s twisting flows and flights of fancy complement Kony’s aggressive, clever, and realistic bars.
Spanning six tracks, Vice Versa finds the two emcees dancing above an electro-funk sample on “Sig n a Draky,” tag-teaming a mob instrumental on “Ludacris,” premiered last month by HYPEBEAST, and flexing their lyrical muscles in service of a lush for-the-ladies jam on the EP’s title track, which The 405 called “an effortless Bay Area bop.” Featuring appearances from Sage The Gemini and Raymond McMahon, Vice Versa EP drops via KILFMB / Sick Wid It / EMPIRE.
Breaking through with his self-titled 2015 EP and its hit single “Big Tymin‘,” the 23-year-old Nef The Pharaoh quickly established himself as one of the most unique and popular emcees in the Bay. Signed to E-40’s Sick Wid It Records, the charismatic emcee is a fixture on regional radio, releasing an acclaimed collaborative EP with Cardo Got Wingz (Kendrick Lamar, Drake) in 2016 and hitting in 2017 with the single “Bling Blaow,” which features Slimmy B of SOB x RBE. In April 2018, Nef shared his debut album The Big Chang Theory, which earned praise from Noisey, who raved “it’s a joyous, melodic project with the old school, timeless feel we’ve come to expect from Nef the Pharaoh. Do yourself a favor and play this in a car as soon as physically possible,” and Pitchfork, who said “Nef is the rare rapper who whose music feels free—free of narrative cohesion, outside interference, or any sense of pressure.” This summer, Nef shared Porter2Grape, an action-packed 5-track collaborative EP with L.A. rapper 03 Greedo. The blistering EP, with the single “Ball Out,” featuring ALLBLACK, and the Pitchfork Best New Track “Blow-Up Bed,“ is currently available for stream and purchase via EMPIRE.
Buy/Stream Vice Versa EP: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/vice-versa-ep/1439128854?app=itunes
Listen to Vice Versa EP: https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/sets/vice-versa-ep/
Check out the L.A. Leakers premiere: http://losangelesleakers.com/2018/11/new-leak-nef-the-pharaoh-shootergang-kony-vice-versa-ep-premere/
Vice Versa EP tracklist:
1. “Sig ‘N A Draky”
2. “Ludacris”
3. “Vice Versa” ft. Sage The Gemini & Raymond McMahon
4. “Picked Off”
5. “Best of Both Worlds”
6. “Where I’m From”
https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/sets/vice-versa-ep/
Please contact Michelle for more info.
The Background:
Praised by Jeff Weiss as “the best rapper from Vallejo since the last great rapper from Vallejo,” the legend Mac Dre being his predecessor, 21 -year-old Nef The Pharaoh is one of the Bay Area’s most exciting young emcees. Signed to E-40‘s Sick Wid It Records, Nef The Pharaoh delivered his debut retail release, a self-titled EP, in November 2015 to high critical praise. Featuring the breakthrough radio hit “Big Tymin’,” which charted at #34 on San Francisco’s 106 KMEL‘s Top 106 Songs of 2015 and earned more than 7.7 million views on YouTube, the Nef The Pharaoh EP firmly established the rapper on the national scene. Nef followed his breakthrough project by joining producer Cardo for Neffy Got Wings, a collaborative EP which released in January, and by accompanying G-Eazy, A$AP Ferg, and Marc E. Bassy on the national When It’s Dark Out Tour. Nef followed up the EP with Fresh Outta Space 3, a “very Bay Area-y” mixtape that turned heads with its synthesis of regional sounds. In 2017, Nef released The Chang Project, featuring the hit single “Bling Blaow,” performed at Rolling Loud Bay Area and Rolling Loud Southern California and collaborated with OMB Peezy, SOB x RBE, and many more. His next project, The Boss Chang Theory, releases in 2018.
Links:
official site | twitter | facebook | soundcloud | instagram
Bio, photos, and streams available here: www.audibletreats.com/nef-the-pharaoh
Vice Versa EP: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/vice-versa-ep/1439128854?app=itunes // https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/sets/vice-versa-ep/
“Vice Versa” (w/ShooterGang Kony) ft. Sage The Gemini & Raymond McMahon: https://empire.lnk.to/ViceVersaSingle // https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/nef-the-pharaoh-shootergang-kony-vice-versa-feat-sage-the-gemini-raymond-mcmahon/
“Ludacris” (w/ ShooterGang Kony): https://youtu.be/zF9SxQ9UCYg
“That Was God”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmfB0T6ahUc
“Boostin”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8u89vT799A
The Big Chang Theory: https://Empire.lnk.to/TheBigChangTheory // https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-big-chang-theory/1415129927?ls=1&app=itunes
“86” ft. Cuban Doll & ALLBLACK: https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/86-feat-cuban-doll-allblack // https://Empire.lnk.to/86
“Big Boss Chang”: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/big-boss-chang/1332903174?i=1332903184&app=itunes // https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/big-boss-chang/
Porter2Grape (w/03 Greedo): https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/porter-2-grape-ep/1397491630?ls=1&app=itunes
“Ball Out” ft. ALLBLACK: https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/ball-out-feat-allblack-nef-the-pharaoh-03-greedo
“Bling Blaow!” ft. SOB x RBE (Slimmy B): https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/bling-blaow-ft-sob-x-rbe-slimmy-b // https://youtu.be/FJVxiyiVflg
The Chang Project: Empire.lnk.to/TheChangProject // https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/sets/the-chang-project
“Put You On” ft. Juvenile: https://youtu.be/RmcdCIf7tDg
Fresh Out Space 3: https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/sets/fresh-outta-space-3
Neffy Got Wings: https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/sets/niffy-got-wings
“Big Tymin'”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3EPYFrBaoQ