Blackchai Is Indie Rap’s Next Not-So-Silent Assassin
The New Yorker’s head-spinning verses burst with leftist ideology, anime shout-outs, and nervy introspection.
Press play on any Blackchai song, and you’re immediately sucked into a vortex of anxiety and blistering technique. There’s an ominous tone to the beats he often chooses, marked by chopped-up strings, sour horn lines, and maudlin piano loops that suggest something cursed is around the corner—even if you can’t see it. As the dread swells and contracts, Chai’s words—a dizzying mix of cacophonous inner monologue, pop culture musings, and Black liberation and communist theologies—cut through the noise, as swift and steely as a drive-by.
On “Dissonant Strains,” a standout from his latest project, Otherwise a Blur, he calls himself an “unstoppable force of nature praying to the Four Elements.” The line is a reference to the idealized pillars hip-hop was founded upon—rapping, DJing, breakdancing, and graffiti—a half-century ago, before its global sweep and commodification. But then Chai quickly clarifies that he’s no stuffy revival act: “Don’t try to bring the feeling back, better live in the moment.” He embodies the purity of rap’s original tenets but isn’t afraid to get irreverent—traditional bar structure and time signatures be damned.
