12.10.2020

Video: Germ – “Hellcat” ft. Shakewell

Based on Real Events, the Latest Video From The Hijinx Tape Details the ATL Rapper’s Close Encounter with the Law

Critical Praise:

“For a time, Germ was your favorite SoundCloud rapper’s favorite SoundCloud rapper. Before established himself with solo releases, he was racking up hundreds of thousands of streams providing a jolt of off-the-wall energy on tracks by $UICIDEBOY$, Fat Nick, and Pouya. When he began to branch out on his own, with the mixtape Bad Shit (Bootleg) and the $UICIDEBOY$ collaboration DIRTYNASTY$UICIDE, he established himself as a raucous spark plug with a nasally flow and rhyme schemes that recalled a certain Academy Award-winning Memphis rap crew” – Complex

“The Haitian rapper is soaring to new heights with a debut album under his belt called Germ Has A Deathwish.” – Interview

“The latest signee to the $uicideboy$ label is an Atlanta skater-turned-rapper with a voice that’s as aggressive as it is gleeful. His new tape isn’t that serious, but his rapping is.” – Pitchfork

The Video:

Influenced by the world of skating and his hometown trap scene, Atlanta’s Germ serves up bangers at a regular clip. Connecting with associate Shakewell for a cinematic new clip, Germ shares “Hellcat,” his latest music video. A salute to Germ’s favorite muscle car, “Hellcat” finds the two G59 Records rappers teeing off on a minimalist beat by Budd Dwyer (aka Scrim from label honchos $uicideboy$), trading bars in hypnotic cadences: “Born Sinner, Lord willin’, I don’t get my dome split/That’s why I got my four-fifth tucked right, let’s hear this flow shift,” spits Germ.

Based on a real life incident, the Highdeas Productions-directed video recreates an intense encounter with law enforcement. Germ recalls this incident in his own words: “It was April 4th, 2019, around 7:30am. I get woken up by a loud-ass bang on the apartment door. My roommate at the time was already at the door, yellin’ ‘it’s the police!’ By the time I got to the front door–like a second later–the door swings open and the f*ckin S.W.A.T. rushes in with huge military guns. They shove the guns in my face and started f*cking my crib up looking for guns. They took my gun, laptop, and phone, and then they let us go. A bit later, I went to the airport for my first European tour…they came back like a month after the tour, served a warrant, and arrested me for possession of a firearm and intent to distribute assault rifles. I fought the case for a year with my co-defendant, and I recently got sentenced. Some light jail time, I have to turn myself in on March 5th, 2021. 3 years probation and 2 year suspended sentence. The reason why it took the ‘Hellcat’ video so long to come out is because we were in the sentencing stage of court, and our lawyers advised us not to drop. Bad sh*t. F*ck 12.”

“Hellcat” is the latest video from The Hijinx Tape, Germ’s 2020 project. Praised by Pitchfork for its gleeful and aggressive rhymes, album is an outrageously confident catalog of Germ’s favorite things, as he rhymes about his ounces of Cookies weed, his garage full of Dodge SRT Hellcats, and having more jewels than your local Zales. The tape is home to singles like, “Walked In,” “7 Hunna Horses“ and”Cookies.”The Hijinx Tape is the ideal soundtrack for crashing a whip just to have an excuse to buy another one – in fact, the album artwork is a photo of Germ’s actual car crash in 2019. Featuring an appearance from G59’s Shakewell, The Hijinx Tape is available now via G59 Records.

Watch “Hellcat” ft. Shakewell: https://youtu.be/1YrVG_zBXVU

The Hijinx Tape tracklist:

“Walked In” (Prod. by Budd Dwyer)
“6 God Freestyle” (Prod. by YAYGO)
“Cookies” (Prod. by Grove$ide)
“7 Hunna Horses” (Prod. by Kevin Rolly)
“Dolo” (Prod. by BeatsByAzura)
“We Outside” (Prod. by M4orty)
“Plead The 5th” (Prod. by Budd Dwyer)
“Runnin Thru Plastic” (Prod. by ProdByOra)
“Brand New Rollie” (Prod. by H3 & Ace Taylor)
“AR Pistols” (Prod. by Kevin Rolly)
“Hellcat” ft. Shakewell (Prod. by Budd Dwyer)
“Green Light” (Prod. by Rxland)

Please contact Michelle or Kerry for more info.

The Background:

Atlanta-native and G59 signee Germ dropped his debut album and first project with the label (helmed by his co-conspirators $uicideboy$) titled Germ Has A Deathwish in 2019. The 11-track LP proves to be his breakout; a versatile and progressive body of work showcasing the elevation of his rap career, from his early upbringing and Haitian roots to his days cutting his teeth as a skater on the streets of ATL. Germ recently supported $uicideboy$ on Grey Day Tour and proved he could infuse energy into crowds numbering into the thousands. Germ’s sophomore album The Hinjinx Tape arrived in Summer 2020 and earned praise from Pitchfork, among other publications.