C.Tangana is trying to buck any trend of inward-facing studio sensibility that may have characterized the Spanish hip-hop scene in past eras. Perhaps this has as much to do with the ascendant artist’s desire to expand his market reach as much as his sonic footprint. But in 2018, Spain’s reigning rapper has sought out collaborators from far afield. Earlier this year, Tangana dropped “Traicionero,” a rocketing collaboration with veteran Dominican dembow producer Cromo X that was released through Mexico City electronic cabal NAAFI. Tangana has hinted that the song is the start of an ongoing, club-facing project with the NAAFI producers that will act as home to his less poppy creations.
But this time around, he’s taken off to a different corner of the música urbana universe, finding inspiration in the work of J Hus, a British emcee with Gambian roots who has wowed England with his homegrown melange of grime and Afrobeats. Tangana grabbed a chance to jump on Hus’ “Did You See,” a marimba-strung 2017 radio hit that J Hus composed with one of his favorite collaborators, British producer Jae5. It illustrates the East London team’s creativity when it comes to the implementation of synth sounds. “Did You See” was the lead single off Hus’ eagerly received studio debut album Common Sense.
On the new version, Pucho largely plays hype man, his Spanish loverboy vocals threading through Hus’ deceptively tranquil-sounding come up anthem. It’s an end-of-summer slow whine for when you need to perrear pegadito a la pared.
Stream the track below: