With a voice that can scratch your brain in just the right spot, singer/rapper Rozaya might be one of the hottest new artists emerging from the UK underground. She didn’t come to play with her debut single “Set it Off”, a confrontational melodic rap track about getting over a man that no longer serves her. What makes this song addicting to me isn’t just the nostalgic guitar loop, trap drum pattern, or even those catchy lines about turning men into daddies and burning love letters – it’s Rozaya’s gritty flow that gives her otherwise smooth sound this rugged edge I can’t get enough of. The grittiness is also the reason you’re able to peel a layer off the song’s confident facade (“runnin’ around town like you just want attention / why you still bother with a bitch like me), to hear Rozaya’s pain about moving on from the past (“you ain’t been just a lover, you’re my homie / reminiscing on them times / when you were mine”).

It looks like “Set it Off” is Rozaya’s first official release, but it turns out she isn’t new to the industry. She’s opened up on social media about her negative past experiences, like signing a predatory label deal at a young age and getting the rights to her music taken away. Though I don’t know much else about this woman, I’m proud of her for coming out strong on the other side of it all. It’s wild that she only has 617 monthly listeners on Spotify right now, because if she continues putting out bops like this, it’s only a matter of time before she blows up.