'Anti Fitna' EP Review: Naezy Tries to Balance Conscious Hip Hop & Islam

[00:00:00] Hello and welcome to Do I Like It, a show jahan hum har baat pe baat krte hain

[00:00:04] And in this episode, I am talking about Nezi's new EP, Anti-Fitna

[00:00:08] Ab dekho, Nezi is undoubtedly the most celebrated yet the most trolled rapper in India

[00:00:15] From his freestyle skills to his viral interview clips to his absence from the scene

[00:00:20] Nezi bhai ke baare mein hamein sha baat hoti rehti hain

[00:00:23] But often Nezi ke music ke baare mein kam aur uski personal life, bloopers etc. ke baare mein zyada halla hota hai

[00:00:30] So now that he has dropped a new EP, I wanna see if this OG rapper is relevant at this time in Indian Hip Hop

[00:00:37] 2014 ke baad se desi hip hop ki badhi zabardast wave aayi thi India mein

[00:00:41] Peaking with the release of Zoya Akhtar's Gully Boy

[00:00:43] And uske baad 3-4 thaalon mein bahot se naye rappers aaye, new young superstars rose to the top

[00:00:49] And we even have dedicated hip hop labels in reality shows

[00:00:52] To aaj ki date mein the hip hop scene has become a legit medium scale industry

[00:00:57] And just like any established industry, hip hop ka bhi ek saturation point saata ja raha hai

[00:01:02] Jaha pe games ke rules set ho chuke hain hai, experimentation gaya sab ho gaya

[00:01:06] Aur ab bonafide superstars have been established

[00:01:09] To iss sabke beech mein, what's the place of an OG like Nezi?

[00:01:13] Where does he stand in his personal mind space and in the largest scheme of Indian Hip Hop?

[00:01:18] Let us find out through this 4-track EP, Anti-Fitna

[00:01:21] Ab agar tumne Nezi ke saath mera interview dekha hai, you would notice ki ek cheez wo bahot baar doar aara tha

[00:01:27] Mujhe maza aa raha hai

[00:01:28] And I think in this EP that maza is evident

[00:01:32] With this 2023 EP Apocalypse and now this

[00:01:35] It is clear that he has regained his focus when it comes to concept matter, messaging and his overall outlook towards the world

[00:01:42] Apne career ke iss phase mei Nezi is battling the evil both inside and outside

[00:01:48] The first track intro 2024 starts with Nezi reading out one of the biggest complaints his fans have had from him

[00:01:54] Bhai tum rahite kahan ho, consistent kyun hi ho, ghaane kyun hi daalte

[00:01:57] And Nezi replies over a grungy electronic instrument

[00:02:01] The project starts with a bang with these metallic textured synths over a hype beat

[00:02:06] It's like you are transported to an underground London night club

[00:02:10] And he talks about his struggle with the new found fame

[00:02:12] How he was sucked into ungodly ways and how he is dealing from it now

[00:02:16] And that is where Nezi's recent music has worked for me the most

[00:02:20] This uniquely Indian story of a gully boy who is dealing with the consequences of shooting to fame too quick

[00:02:26] Bhai ye gangster rap wala scene nahi hai ki bas gun bars chal raha hai

[00:02:29] Nezi is talking about convincing his parents to let him rap

[00:02:32] Iss sa zyada desi kya ho sakta hai

[00:02:34] Kaise ek traditional Islamic ghar ka ladka music aur apne mazhab ko balance karta hai

[00:02:39] To bahar chahi log usse kitna bhi troll kare hai

[00:02:41] Ya uske freestyles ko whack bole

[00:02:43] All Nezi wants to do is rap and spread his message through his music

[00:02:48] And through the first track he's trying to balance this idea of halal, of righteousness with hip hop

[00:03:13] If you look at a lot of hip hop in the US, it has had a very strong relationship with Islam

[00:03:18] Conscious rappers like Jay Electronica and Rakim have embraced the nation of Islam

[00:03:23] And through this religious messaging, these guys do talk about social and political issues of racism, poverty and violence

[00:03:29] And I think Nezi bhi kuch ussi track pe ja raha hai

[00:03:32] After all, Nezi is a very strong person

[00:03:34] And he has a very strong relationship with Islam

[00:03:36] And he has a very strong relationship with Islam

[00:03:38] And I think Nezi bhi kuch ussi track pe ja raha hai

[00:03:40] After being confused and lost with all this fame

[00:03:43] He's embracing both his faith and the political aspects of conscious hip hop

[00:03:47] He's not as morally judgemental as a stereotypically Christian rapper

[00:03:52] But he's still hip hop, matlab ho hard hai but he's still talking about real stuff

[00:03:56] And that's the line I would like him to take in the future as well

[00:03:59] The second track, 3rd Diya, is a more braggadocious track

[00:04:03] The third track, 3rd Diya, is a more braggadocious track

[00:04:06] Where Nezi is distancing himself from the negative people in his life

[00:04:10] Jo bahar ke gaano me hota hai na

[00:04:11] They say this, they do that

[00:04:13] Ya apne gaano me hota hai in logon ko wale bars

[00:04:16] Toh iss gaane me bhi po unhi logon ke baare me baat kar raha hai

[00:04:18] The title 3rd Dete is apparently a Bombay slang

[00:04:21] Which I'm hearing for the first time

[00:04:23] Mujhe laga hai it refers to the third finger

[00:04:25] The track features some of his more experimental flows

[00:04:28] And his signature rhyming dictionary schemes

[00:04:31] Jo bahar ke gaano me hota hai na

[00:04:32] Where he's just reading words out of rhyme zone

[00:04:35] Chahe wo concept se koi relation uska ho ya na ho

[00:04:38] Begaana, diwana, parwana, kamana, khujaana, sujaana, pitara etc

[00:04:42] And it sounds good on a beat

[00:04:44] But yaaha zyada focus, kam time mein maximum words bolne ka hai

[00:04:48] Na ki acchi aur cohesive rhymes likhne ka

[00:04:51] The desi equivalent of lyrical, miracle, spiritual, individual rhymes

[00:04:55] Yaaha pe bhi kuch aisa hi kar raha hai wo

[00:04:57] In the grand scheme of the EP

[00:04:59] The moment of Nezi purging out all his angst and the gandhi from his mind

[00:05:04] Jaise bolta hai na ki healing hone se pehle ek phase aata hai

[00:05:06] Jahaan you embrace the bitterness and bottled up aggression

[00:05:09] Ye gaana kuch baisa hai

[00:05:10] Kyuki iske baad aate hai do calm, groovy tracks

[00:05:14] Jahaan pe hi talks about his actual goals

[00:05:16] His actual mission on this earth

[00:05:18] And even in the rap game

[00:05:19] Paar features an old school sample based production by Vernon Tauro

[00:05:23] Aur Nezi baat kar raha hai ki

[00:05:25] Bhai maine haar nahi maani

[00:05:26] Kyuki aap sab ke pyaar ne mujhe haar nahi diya

[00:05:28] He again goes into this spiritual side and drops saintly bars like

[00:05:31] Dushmanon ko maaf karein, shaitaan se faas le na aap le

[00:05:34] But there's one tiny issue I have with these bars

[00:05:37] Ab deko, Nezi's rhymes aren't complex

[00:05:40] And they've never been

[00:05:42] He's not writing double and triple entendras and complex metaphors

[00:05:45] While that in itself isn't a bad thing

[00:05:48] In Nezi's case it works in a negative way

[00:05:50] The bars themselves don't give you the instant gratification of a well crafted punchline

[00:05:56] Like when Divine says,

[00:05:58] Sapne hote sach tab maza aata sone mein

[00:06:00] Ya dollar jab involved tabhi send samaj aata hai

[00:06:02] You go like, oh kya bars hai

[00:06:04] But for the most part, Nezi isn't dropping bars like these

[00:06:07] Ab isme koi sahiya galat tarika nahi hai

[00:06:09] Sabke apne apne aspects hai

[00:06:11] Punchlines aur barswari lyricism

[00:06:14] Short term mein bahot sei lagti hai

[00:06:16] But it doesn't have as strong of an impact in an artist's long term legacy

[00:06:20] Jaise rappers like Joel Santana and Lil Wayne are amazing at wordplay

[00:06:24] Ab I believe in legend hai for sure

[00:06:26] But I would never compare them to people like Nas and Killer Mike

[00:06:29] Who don't overly rely on wordplay alone

[00:06:31] Inka concept matter, commentary etc. zyada important hai

[00:06:34] Rather than just being bars bars bars

[00:06:36] Again koi sahi galat jawab nahi isme

[00:06:38] Mai khud apne tracks me storytelling pe focus karne ki try karna hu

[00:06:42] And that sort of comes at the cost of bars

[00:06:45] Ab storytelling aur punchlines ka balance strike karna bhot muskule hai

[00:06:48] Aap tum seif Krishna ki tarah punchlines maroge

[00:06:50] To people like me would say ki tumhari gaano mein depth nahi hai

[00:06:53] Aur agar tum Prabdeep ki tarah story telling aur concept albums nikaalogue

[00:06:57] To you will be considered a legend

[00:06:58] But fir wo instant wo wale moments tumhari gaano mein nahi hoge

[00:07:02] And I think Nezi right now is having the worst of both worlds

[00:07:06] Punchlines wo maarta nahi

[00:07:07] And his stories and concepts are not engaging enough to sustain a long standing connection

[00:07:12] What he's saying is solid

[00:07:13] But kahin na kahin we have to admit that his rhymes do get a bit simplistic

[00:07:17] Again, I'm not saying ki bars bars maro

[00:07:19] But thoda pen game toh up karne ki zirrath hai

[00:07:22] But I think he more than makes up for it with his flows

[00:07:26] Bhai yeh insaan scientist hai when it comes to flows

[00:07:29] And that makes sure ki uske gaane kabhi bhi boring nahi lagte

[00:07:32] You're always on the lookout for the next crazy scheme he'll come up with

[00:07:35] Agar words sunne jao toh thode corny lag sakta hai

[00:07:38] But goddamn it sounds dope on a beat

[00:07:41] He flows so perfectly on these boom bap beats

[00:07:44] It's like he's freestyling with a couple of friends in a cipher

[00:07:47] Socho bhai agar Nezi actually main aisa freestyle karta toh bhai black thought level status ho raha toh uska

[00:07:52] And even on the last track, Anti Fitna, he doubles down on his mission

[00:07:56] He says, ijazat na mili toh maine chheen liya

[00:07:58] Prithvi par janam liya bhalai phalaane

[00:08:00] He's telling himself and the world around him

[00:08:03] Ki mujhe rap karne se mat roko, main khuda ka kaam kar raha ho

[00:08:06] Aur waise bhi mujhe aakhir mein upari jawab dena toh wahi dekhenge

[00:08:09] Yaha dharti pe mat roko na mujhe

[00:08:10] While again, the rhymes on this one are basic

[00:08:13] At one point he rhymes, kya mila with wahi raha

[00:08:16] But yaar ab mainne na apne mind mein Nezi ke verses ko thoda Lil Wayne ki tarah sunna shuru karte hai

[00:08:21] Dekho, kuch artists hote hain jaise Kendrick aur J. Cole

[00:08:24] Jo har ek bar soch samaj ke likhte hain

[00:08:27] And you take everything they say on face value

[00:08:29] Tume overtime unke baare mein unke gaano se pata chalta hai, right?

[00:08:32] But somebody like Lil Wayne doesn't write his verses

[00:08:36] Toh bas jo vibe aati hai, wo spit karke booth se nikal jata hai

[00:08:39] So while he spits a great ton of bars, a huge chunk of them is substandard

[00:08:44] But every now and then he will come up with something so genius ki bhai wo got aadmi ho jayega

[00:08:49] Nezi abhi kuch aisa hi hai

[00:08:50] He spits a lot on his tracks

[00:08:52] They are densely populated with words, most of them don't connect

[00:08:55] But jo connect karte hain wo impactful lagte hain kaafi

[00:08:58] Like on the final track when he says

[00:08:59] Kalaaki kam nahi kari shuddhata

[00:09:01] Kabiliyat meri Karishma Kudrat ka

[00:09:03] Simple, succinct and a bar

[00:09:05] Overall, just like his last project, this EP too is a transition phase I think

[00:09:10] There is true potential in Nezi as an artist

[00:09:13] But he is still on his journey

[00:09:15] And I think as fans of hip hop, we need to stand by him at this point

[00:09:19] Of course, agar wo koi VAC freestyle karega

[00:09:21] Ya cheeti se hip hop seekhne ki baat karega ho toh mazaak udha uska

[00:09:24] But we also need to be conscious enough to see him through this time of healing

[00:09:28] Kuch log therapy leta hai, kuch log workaholic ban jaata hai

[00:09:30] Kuch log dharam ki taraf chale jaata hai

[00:09:32] Sab ka apna tarika hota hai

[00:09:33] But end mein sabko suffering ki kam karne hai apni

[00:09:35] And artists like Nezi are really important who are still talking about something personal and unique to themselves

[00:09:41] Instead of making cookie cutter formulaic music

[00:09:44] Uska music toh main achha lage ya ganda lage

[00:09:46] Ek cheez deny nahi kar sakte hai bhai ki wo music us bande se unique

[00:09:50] And yes, this was another episode of Do I Like It?

[00:09:52] Do let me know your thoughts on the project

[00:09:54] The conversation continues in the comments below

[00:09:56] This was Prateek and I'll see you in the next one