Photo by Mavi and Niontay/ design by Sabrina Kaune/The FADER
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When I linked up with the Brooklyn producer Laron back in June, he mentioned that he’d recently cooked up a beat with New Jersey’s Subjxct 5 for a forthcoming MAVI single. That song is “Jammers Anonymous” which also enlists rapper Niontay to ping-pong bars over a spare, twinkling instrumental. These are two of their generation’s brightest lyricists, and being in close proximity always launches them to new heights. On the track, MAVI flexes invisible ink nudes as Niontay polishes off a Yerba Mate before enjoying a Percocet; MAVI doesn’t even have to use the Draco on his hip because Niontay’s stepping in the moment a “n***a look wrong.”
Compared to the songs on MAVI’s soul-searching last album shadowbox, “Jammers Anonymous” is downright diabolical, indulging in the North Carolina rapper’s “shadow self” more than usual. Last summer, MAVI told me he’d been thinking about “reframing my relationship with a part of myself that destroys,” and getting more comfortable with “all the things that you would be scared to admit you are.” None of those worries flicker through here, however, as he stands strong with Niontay. For now, MAVI isn’t running from anything.
