Mina Rose shares her new solo track ‘Kingdom.’
This follows her widely-acclaimed first single ‘Lemons & Limes’, which picked up support across Radio 1, 1Xtra, Spotify, Beats 1 and also surrounds Mina’s collaboration with Tricky (‘Running Wild’). Mina Rose’s debut EP is expected later this year, with further details expected soon.
Effortlessly blending elements of trip-hop, dub and hip-hop, ‘Kingdom’ is a darker yet no less vivid cut of multicultural pop from Mina Rose. Inspired by the dreamy textures of Massive Attack or long-time-hero-turned-
collaborator Tricky, ‘Kingdom’ describes – says Mina – “this idea that we are all looking at each others’ lives and comparing them to our own, instead of realising the true wealth and rarity of your own experiences and possessions. I want to focus on building a kingdom of your own, rather than wishing to own someone else’s.”
Diversity, community and creativity are central to everything Mina Rose does – from the culture-clash of sounds suggested through her early music to the South London block where Mina was first exposed to the possibilities of a life lived differently (whether through the neighbours, a father and uncle who occasionally produced House, a step-dad who played in local Ska bands, or the Roma ancestry on her mother’s side, which includes the famous ‘Queen of Kent Gypsies’ Urania Boswell Lee). Having juggled studies in Visual Arts & Design with teaching herself to make music online, Mina Rose began to translate her own experiences of London’s melting pot into writing songs which are as rooted in the paradoxes of present day city-living as they are conscious of history and hierarchy.
A window into this world-view was offered by the video to ‘Lemons & Limes’: a colourful yet cutting compound of influences (Outkast, Gorillaz, Gil Scott Heron) lyrically observing this lack of change in the relationships between the police and the youth. Already, Mina Rose is beginning to make waves beyond her close-knit musical crowd: she also runs her own online vintage clothing shop, Girl Down Brockley, with a debut EP – expected later this year – suggesting Mina Rose is well on her way to building a kingdom all of her own.
