Nước is a multifaceted Vietnamese word: It means “water” most commonly, but can sometimes mean “country” or “nation.” It’s a slippery meaning appropriate for the title for hawak’s debut album, a screamo tone-poem exploring the liminality of refugees, immigrants and their children. He’s signed to Jamla Records (9th Wonder’s independent record label) and is part of rap group Grand Nationxl, so the future looks bright for this agile lyricist. Not many local rappers stepped into 2021 with such audacity, but Kelly stays humble. With unexpected sample flips and features by Reuben Vincent, GQ and Heather Victory, Kells is D.E.A.D. He spits, “Too many questions with no question marks / You’s a mark if you can’t spit your heart inside of this art” on my personal favorite, “Make Room.” On the standout track “Soul of a Man,” he proclaims, “Life after death / So my time spent is a pit stop.” Be sure to listen on repeat to catch the wordplay.
With a narrative blend of catchy hooks and metaphors for days, the project chronicles the passing of Kelly’s former rap moniker. is Oakland rapper Ian Kelly’s sophomore album and it shines. Ironically, sunning in the aura of your authentic self often requires a symbolic death.
They asked questions instead of speaking in absolutes, and nudged us towards empathy, understanding, catharsis and even joy. We saw lyricists and instrumentalists reaching new heights of their powers, in terms of both craft and concept. When KQED Arts & Culture looked back on the year in Bay Area music, we saw that the most compelling albums helped us contemplate our relationships to ourselves and our communities. Yet the pandemic has forced us to constantly calculate risk and make adjustments to how we move about the world, and the best music of the year helped us navigate this time of buffering. In a weird, in-between year, many of us were grateful to gather again in homes, concert halls and dive bars for some much-needed spiritual sustenance.