Heems has been on a prolific roll in 2024, as expected, and yet the depth of his concepts and rhymes sometimes feels like he's sat on them for years. Moreover, he just dropped a new single and music video, "MANTO," featuring Detroit-based producer Sid Vashi and pianist and composer Vijay Iyer. It follows his first solo album in nine years, LAFANDAR, which dropped this February and was bolstered by singles like "Sri Lanka."
Furthermore, the "Accent" MC tackles generational trauma from the 1947 Partition of India and Pakistan, both in his lyricism and in his music video. In the visuals, Heems features the women in his family, including his mother, his sister, his nieces, and his late aunt. His delivery is passionate and restless, whereas the piano-led melodies and dusty boom-bap beat add a layer of melancholy, nostalgia, and tenderness to the song. It's a reflection on heritage in many different ways, not only touching on ethnic and national roots, but also speaking to how the heft of experiences like the Partition and the conflict and pain that ensued can also define our inheritances.
We know that Heems has been through a lot in his personal life, and this perseverant record translates beautifully as a historical encapsulation and a touching tribute. If you haven't heard "MANTO" yet, find it on your preferred streaming service or check out the music video below. Also down there, you can find some standout bars and the comments section for you to drop your thoughts on the track. Meanwhile, as always, come back to HNHH for more great rap drops around the clock.
Heems' "MANTO" With Sid Vashi & Vijay Iyer: Watch The Music Video
Quotable Lyrics
What’s in a line, I could draw one every time,
I stand in line in court when they bagged me for a crime,
A sword or a nine, used to tear and divide,
They took what’s ours now, they say that’s not mine