Nitty Scott Pays Homage to New York Culture in “BLACKARITA”
New York City is a melting pot, encompassing a variety of different cultures and ethnic groups that live there. Home to millions of people, New York is a place that reflects the world, with a multitude of traditions and customs constantly learning to co-exist and live together. With so much diversity, there’s no “one face” of New York—there is nothing monolithic about it, nor will there ever be. It is the place that has given much to the world; between fashion, music, language, and entertainment, New York’s contributions remain endless.
One of the most prominent things it has given to the world is hip-hop music, which originated over 50 years ago in the South Bronx, created by Black and Brown youth who wanted an outlet to express themselves more freely. Since its inception, hip-hop culture has been a dominating force, giving a voice to the voiceless and deep insight into what life is like for Black and Brown communities who are often ignored or underrepresented in the mainstream media.
South Bronx youth prepare for a block party.
Generations later, hip-hop is known as one of the most influential genres of music in the world, being replicated and reproduced on almost every part of the planet.
Brooklyn-based artist, Nitty Scott is a descendant of both Black and Latinx culture, an identity that she has been loud and proud about since the very beginning of her career over a decade ago. With a mother from Puerto Rico and an African-American father from New Orleans, Scott grew up with deep cultural roots that would later influence her sound. Because of this, she is constantly paying homage to both sides of her heritage, as well as hip-hop culture for giving her a platform.
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On her new single “BLACKARITA,” she not only embodies the Afro-Latina blood that made her， but the streets of the Bronx where rap was first born. Sampling Shakira’s “Hips Don’t Lie,” Scott gives us an authentic snapshot of Nuyorican life, one that she finds empowering and dear to her, rather than something that she’s trying to escape or outgrow. She embraces the real gentrification-free lifestyle that has now been unfairly deemed “ratchet” or “shameful” by the masses; one that depicts large bamboo earrings, long nails, big hair, and makeup, and frequent visits to the local chicken spots and bodegas around the neighborhood.
On the cover for “BLACKARITA,” Scott can be seen personifying this very essence. She wears large Coke bottles in her hair, using them to substitute traditional curlers. Along with this, she sports a small white tank-top, little denim shorts, and a small chain with large earrings. This a look that would have her playing the lead role in a 90s John Singleton film like Poetic Justice or even a character in a more accurate version of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In the Heights.