Inland Empire-based MC Noa James has surfaced with the Granny Said LP. As the title suggests, the project is dedicated to the grandmother who raised him.
“Her love, wisdom and anti-bullshit mentality has saved me from me and even helped me propel in this music business,” James tells HipHopDX. “My state of confidence is because she only uplifts me. I want to give her flowers while she’s here. She deserves that and more.”
Packed with 15 tracks, Granny Said features special guests Hugh Augustine, Sahtyre and JT, among others.
Throughout the album, James’ raw, gritty vocals cut through a range of beats — from melodic boom-bap loops and bass-heavy trap to slow-rolling jams. The recorded messages from his grandmother peppered across the project sew things up seamlessly as James raps about his tumultuous childhood.
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“My homie in high school would tell me, ‘You’re like the Water Boy [Adam Sandler character], you always talking about your Granny,'” he says. “I’d tell him, ‘That’s my best friend.’ During that time, my mom was in prison and my pops was somewhere in Haiti.
“Every aspect of my life has some of my Granny’s wisdom in it, so automatically each song has her wisdom. Don’t look at this album as a project about my Granny, it’s about how my Granny, with her love and strength, encouraged me to be me and overcome everything.”
Granny Said marks the Alpha Pup/The Order Label signee’s first album since 2011. Over the past few years, he’s also lost more than 100 pounds, which has had a positive impact on not only his health but also his outlook.
“I want my music to remove fear from love,” he explains. “I want my music to help the world with self-love, self-forgiveness, self-education, self-awareness and knowledge of self. Be accountable for your choices!
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“To me, these are the core ideas to make a better you and creating a better foundation for a better world. My message will always be about love, positivity and how I’ve overcome, that’s my formula over any beat.”
Granny Said arrives on Friday (July 27). Cop the album here and check out the stream, cover art and tracklist below. [apple_news_ad type=”any”]
