Proving unstoppable with a prolific string of visuals, rising Bronx drill star Sha EK (pronounced Sha-Eee-Kay) drops the music video for his single “O To The G” today. Watch it above. It sets the stage for the release of his forthcoming new mixtape Return Of The Jiggy, out December 9, 2022.
“O To The G” once again asserts Sha EK as a fiery trendsetter. In the clip, he spits to the camera from his studio, locking into an unbreakable verbal barrage over production twisted up with a Middle Eastern-style guitar loop. His eyes blaze red as fire shoots from his fingertips, among other supernatural happenings. The momentum relents only to pay tribute to a fallen friend “RIP EDOT BABY 2005-2022.” It serves as a fitting and touching homage.
Just prior, he revealed the equally energetic clip for “Level I’m At.” Right out of the gate, it reeled in hundreds of thousands of views. Attack The Culture proclaimed, “The song alone hits hard but the visual forces you to move around. Turn up, turn up.”
Everything just sets the stage for Return Of The Jiggy. The anticipated mixtape illuminates every side of Sha Ek’s approach as an undeniable and unapologetic force. He turns up with hard-hitting bars and hypnotic hooks against a backdrop of seething, scorching, and sharp production.
He teased out the project’s arrival with the three-song bundle O To The G. Beyond reacting on streaming platforms, those bangers—“O To The G,” “Billboard Baby,” and “Level I’m At”—earned widespread acclaim. In addition to plugs from Grunge Cake, The Hype Magazine, and more, NPR touted O To The G on “Heat Check” and proclaimed, “Recent drill music has been defined by great, singular rap voices: the late Pop Smoke, of course, but also Headie One in the UK, and now Ice Spice. Sha EK has such a voice – a shout that threatens to tear his songs open at the seams.”
Kicking off the fall with a bang, Sha EK recently unleashed his debut mixtape, Face of The What. The project has already amassed tens of millions of streams. It has also earned widespread critical acclaim. UPROXX pegged it among “The Best New Hip-Hop This Week” and stated, “After hearing Sha Ek’s new project, there may no longer be any question as to what exactly he is the face of.” DJ Booth spotlighted it as one of “5 New Albums You Need To Hear This Week on Audiomack” and assured, “Face of The What is a major label debut gone right—there is no compromise here. Sha EK triples down on his hounding raps and the sample-based drill that’s captivating fans and taking over his borough.” HotNewHipHop summed it up best as “a breathless onslaught of intense Drill, featuring hard beats and even harder bars.”
TRACKLISTING
O to the G
Billboard Baby
Level I’m At
Return of the Jiggy
41 ways
Sitchy Outside
Turned They Back
Menace
Situated
For The Block
Got Bigger
Lately
Losin My Mind
Been Through
ABOUT SHA EK:
Sha EK is at the forefront of a new wave of urgent, militant, and captivating street rap: Bronx drill. The 19-year-old’s booming, serrated rasp overflows with the aggression and emotion required to tear through the most thunderous and frenetic drill beats. On energetic, war-ready singles like the smash “D&D,” the South Bronx native brings you to the trenches, moving at breakneck speed through places where shots could ring out at any moment. Born Chalim Perry to Honduran parents, Sha EK spent much of his upbringing observing the harsh realities of the Melrose section of the South Bronx. At 15, he survived a gunshot wound while walking in his neighborhood, which prompted him to record the vivid and visceral drill we hear today. Local support mounted with each single he released, but Sha Ek broke beyond his neighborhood with 2020’s “D&D.” With over 5.2M views on YouTube alone, “D&D” has become a Bronx drill anthem that proves the subgenre has the potential to reach well beyond the five boroughs. Now that he’s signed to Warner Records, Sha EK’s working tirelessly on his debut project. He believes what comes next will advance the sound of Bronx drill while showcasing his own stylistic and melodic capabilities. His intensity remains, but these days he’s also recording soulful tracks that capture his pain and will surely echo out into the listening world. No matter how far his music reaches, every win is a victory for his city, his neighborhood, and his family.
