You can also grab the track on Soundcloud.Toronto is teeming with new young rappers, which is exciting because even though the city is more than happy to have Drake billboards pop up here and there, it's certainly time for a freshman class. Tasha the Amazon, a freshwoman, is part of that cohort. Her new video "Scallywags" lights the taco-filled Kensington Market neighbourhood ablaze with a lot of public drinking and general fuck-you-we're-cool behaviour that makes for an entertaining video. Since you probably are hearing about Tasha for the first time, we asked her some questions to try and get under her scalp and figure out what's going on in there.Noisey Canada: It seems like young Toronto rappers are very quickly finding their voice. Would you agree with that?
Tasha: For sure. We've been down here just living and DJing and partying, running mischief and making tracks… at some point you look up and realize people you run with are onto something big. Something different and important. What's the most fun part of being a female rapper?
[Laughs] I'm a rapper, I'm an artist, I'm a producer. So I guess the most fun part about it is transcending that category. Having rappers clamor to come to my studio, to collab with me and be produced by me. And schooling everyone. Constantly. What are the challenges involved with being a female rapper?
For me, there are none. I guess some people see the world in terms of male/female, but that's not the way the pie is actually sliced. There are only two kinds of artists – the ones who are great, and the ones who suck balls. There are lots of chicks and dudes in both those categories. The only challenge is to be real, to ignore the noise, to push yourself, to break the rules, and to fear absolutely nothing. If you can do that every day, you end up not sucking balls. It's all about avoiding ball sucking. Why does the Kensington Market neighbourhood work so well in a rap video?
Kensington is like Neverland. It's a misfit's paradise. There's flame-juggling hippies, a good low-rider scene, nice tattoo spots, and your friendly neighborhood dope boys in the park. Plus there's the legendary Sneaky Dees. Filming there, out on the street, and at hidden gems like Cold Tea… that's that Scallywag life. It works because it's natural for me. What can you tell me about your crew?
Everyone I run with is talented, intelligent and swaggy as fuck. We're gawds. I grew up reading a lot. Kerouac and Ginsberg, Hunter S. Thompson and Vonnegut. Smart people who were real shit disturbers. I wanted a crew like that, but in my own way - a way that was real for hip hop. A crew of people who wanted to make trouble, get drunk and break things, but who could also just sit up and talk about ideas and philosophize. I have that now. What's your connection to the Amazon?
I'm a warrior…And the name Shaka Zulu was already taken. What's the last thing you bought off Amazon?
[Laughs] Last week I ordered these squishy balls you're supposed to lay on and they like, massage your back or something. I have a shoulder injury from Muay Thai sparring and a friend recommended them, so… I bought a pair of balls. And a book about lucid dreaming. What's your favourite book?
It's a toss up between Mother Night and Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut. I read them both once every couple years to get my head right. How does being in Toronto influence your music?
The standard here is high. Very high. People are connoisseurs. Everyone here is a DJ or blogger, a performer or designer, or some kind of artist. They know their hip hop history and they're the first to be on that new shit too. The only thing to do here is be exceedingly real and exceedingly dope or get out of the way. What's the worst song ever?
How much time do we have, haha? If I'm pressed though, I might say Single Ladies by Beyoncé. She is supreme talent, don't get me wrong… but, that song though! Ugh… What's your favourite rap verse?
That's difficult. At this moment, DMX, "Who We Be." That first verse. He goes soo hard! DMX is the angriest poet that ever lived. And in the outro of that song, he says, "These motherfuckers don't know, who we are. They don't know. They couldn't possibly fuckin' know, dawg…" which basically sums up the energy in my camp right now, [laughs].wwwww
Tasha: For sure. We've been down here just living and DJing and partying, running mischief and making tracks… at some point you look up and realize people you run with are onto something big. Something different and important. What's the most fun part of being a female rapper?
[Laughs] I'm a rapper, I'm an artist, I'm a producer. So I guess the most fun part about it is transcending that category. Having rappers clamor to come to my studio, to collab with me and be produced by me. And schooling everyone. Constantly. What are the challenges involved with being a female rapper?
For me, there are none. I guess some people see the world in terms of male/female, but that's not the way the pie is actually sliced. There are only two kinds of artists – the ones who are great, and the ones who suck balls. There are lots of chicks and dudes in both those categories. The only challenge is to be real, to ignore the noise, to push yourself, to break the rules, and to fear absolutely nothing. If you can do that every day, you end up not sucking balls. It's all about avoiding ball sucking. Why does the Kensington Market neighbourhood work so well in a rap video?
Kensington is like Neverland. It's a misfit's paradise. There's flame-juggling hippies, a good low-rider scene, nice tattoo spots, and your friendly neighborhood dope boys in the park. Plus there's the legendary Sneaky Dees. Filming there, out on the street, and at hidden gems like Cold Tea… that's that Scallywag life. It works because it's natural for me. What can you tell me about your crew?
Everyone I run with is talented, intelligent and swaggy as fuck. We're gawds. I grew up reading a lot. Kerouac and Ginsberg, Hunter S. Thompson and Vonnegut. Smart people who were real shit disturbers. I wanted a crew like that, but in my own way - a way that was real for hip hop. A crew of people who wanted to make trouble, get drunk and break things, but who could also just sit up and talk about ideas and philosophize. I have that now. What's your connection to the Amazon?
I'm a warrior…And the name Shaka Zulu was already taken. What's the last thing you bought off Amazon?
[Laughs] Last week I ordered these squishy balls you're supposed to lay on and they like, massage your back or something. I have a shoulder injury from Muay Thai sparring and a friend recommended them, so… I bought a pair of balls. And a book about lucid dreaming. What's your favourite book?
It's a toss up between Mother Night and Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut. I read them both once every couple years to get my head right. How does being in Toronto influence your music?
The standard here is high. Very high. People are connoisseurs. Everyone here is a DJ or blogger, a performer or designer, or some kind of artist. They know their hip hop history and they're the first to be on that new shit too. The only thing to do here is be exceedingly real and exceedingly dope or get out of the way. What's the worst song ever?
How much time do we have, haha? If I'm pressed though, I might say Single Ladies by Beyoncé. She is supreme talent, don't get me wrong… but, that song though! Ugh… What's your favourite rap verse?
That's difficult. At this moment, DMX, "Who We Be." That first verse. He goes soo hard! DMX is the angriest poet that ever lived. And in the outro of that song, he says, "These motherfuckers don't know, who we are. They don't know. They couldn't possibly fuckin' know, dawg…" which basically sums up the energy in my camp right now, [laughs].wwwww