Denise Chaila has teamed up with Zimbabwean-born Irish rapper, Jafaris to release her new single Anseo. Anseo was on Denise’s debut mixtape Go Bravely in October without Jafaris and it quickly became a fan favourite, so Denise decided to collaborate with the Early singer to add a whole new dimension to the already fantastic song. Her sister, Kimberly also designed the cover art for the single.
Denis took to Instagram to talk about the new track, saying; “@jafarismusic blessed the beat with fire and I’m so proud of what we gave here. I believe there is power in play. I believe there is power in recalling your history. I believe that our future is built on our ability to dream powerfully. Together. The day we perform this with people present will feel… immaculate.”
Jafaris, real name Percy Chamburuka, is quickly becoming one of Ireland’s fastest-rising hip-hop stars after being nominated for the RTÉ Choice Music Prize for his debut album ‘STRIDE’ in 2019. He spoke about working on the single saying; “This song represents the mentality that I believe Ireland needs to adopt in order to be an example to the world. We have an opportunity to tackle the race issue that plagues our world by adding to the already potent culture that exists here through creativity, innovation and economics. I have ideas, so I shouted out my bro Michael D Higgins. Denise was already spreading a similar narrative and it only felt right to come together and express our views.”
This is not the first time Denise has written about race, a lot of her art tells the story of being a black woman in Ireland. Her song Chaila pokes fun at the different ways people pronounce her name. She also released a compelling and inspiring piece called Duel Citizenship in September. The piece talks about the weight of the phrase “where are from originally?” The breath-taking piece shows the ignorance and microagressions that run rampant throughout Ireland and the work that needs to be done to change that.
Speaking about the piece on Instagram, Denise described it beautifully, saying; “I’ve discovered over time that often you’re not the one with the identity crisis. It’s the world that’s challenged by your wholeness. By the way you cannot and will not sit comfortably in boxes or conform to a narrative that was not created with you in mind. With the truth of who we all are in mind. ”
Denise Chaila has had a very successful year. Go Bravely, her mixtape, came out in October and included songs such as Chaila, Holy Grail and Down. Denise was also announced this year as Ireland’s highest-charting female soloist this year. She also has Hot Press’ Top Track of the year and performed on The Late Late Show in September, Perspectives: Imagining Ireland. Speaking Up, Singing Louder in National Concert Hall, Dublin in February and Other Voices: Courage, in May 2020.
Anseo is available on all platforms now; you can check it out below.
