For today’s episode of “Media Matrix,” I will be reviewing yet another badass woman rapper.
This rapper goes by the name of Yung Gemmy (or Spacegirl Gemmy), and her aesthetic is notably different from that of last week’s Princess Vitara. Unlike the Southern California bling and glitz appeal of Vitara, Yung Gemmy prefers a futuristic, neon-colored atmosphere with Hello Kitty merch, emojis, and Nintendo references.
Yung Gemmy’s music video “CUTEST IN THE GAME” sums up her vibe succinctly. The beat to the song, produced by Yung Gemmy herself, has Kyoto-style harp synths and bumping 808s. The production on the song isn’t immaculate, but it has that made-on-a-laptop kind of homemade allure which made Desiigner’s “Panda” a radio hit.
Where Gemmy really shines is the endearing, cute, and imaginative vibe she creates as a rapper. In the chorus of the song she chants lackadaisically, “Yeah, I already told you I’m the cutest in the game / I got Hello Kitty rugs and a Hello Kitty chain.” Perhaps the best line in the song, though, is “I am not a rapper, I’m a cutie from the star fields / In abandoned malls, playing Tetris doing cartwheels.”
The music video for “CUTEST IN THE GAME” is a pastel-colored kaleidoscope of arcade games, jewelry, internet references, and candy, and it complements Gemmy’s character perfectly.
As one YouTuber commented, the video is “Germany’s ‘Hurt'” (in reference to Swedish rapper Yung Lean’s pinpointing the Sadboy aesthetic with his hyper-cyber “Hurt” music video). Looking at it from this perspective, “CUTEST GIRL IN THE WORLD” is a tad derivative, or certainly not as game-changing as Yung Lean.
Gemmy’s appeal, however, comes in the way her lackadaisical persona carries over into her approach to producing. While ” CUTEST GIRL IN THE WORLD” has top notch video production, the beat production is not up to the same level of cleanliness. As another YouTuber commented, the 808 sub is incorrectly tuned a semitone too low. This is an amateur-to-intermediate kind of beat-making mistake, because 808 sub frequencies are typically so low it’s difficult to detect what pitch they are really producing.
Even though the detuned bass is somewhat aggressive, it doesn’t stop Yung Gemmy from gaining a huge amount of support for her art. While one can chalk this phenomenon up to “the masses” being unable to distinguish good art from bad art, I see it as an inspiring testament to the ability for art to create waves in 2016.
Even though Gemmy’s beats might not be perfect, her sincerity is there, and that’s what makes her shine. One might say that in an age where anyone can become a music star, the supposed “sacredness” of musical conventions for being an “artist” are now becoming totally debased.
Some might think this is sad, but I think this is a really inspiring message for bedroom producers and artists who might not be so “musically trained.” We’re in the wild west all over again, the rules are gone, sincerity is all you need.
Spacegirl Gemmy has other fun music videos on her YouTube channel “SPACEGIRL GEMMY,” which features a similar kind of aesthetic and charm. You can also find her on Soundcloud under the handle of the same name. If she keeps on producing music and making dope art, I think she could go places.
