The anonymous rapper taking on the patriarchy

Despite only releasing her debut EP last October, B of Briz is already making waves on the Bristol music scene. After moving to Bristol from a small town in the West Country to complete her PhD, the masked rapper decided to stay in the city.

From working on a new podcast to becoming a self-taught rapper, the artist has worked hard to produce and release all of her own music. Forty-Two, B of Briz’s debut EP, was self-released last year and is titled after her age and what she’s learned so far.

“I wanted it to be a really short introduction into the way I see the world,” the artist tells Bristol24/7.

“From a very DIY perspective and basically no budget, the EP has done quite well! I’ve had support from Tom Robinson on BBC 6 Music and from Fresh on the Net which has been really exciting.”

B of Briz is open and honest about her restrictions in an industry that she has come to later than other more established artists.

“All of the technical side of the production as well as the sharing it on social media doesn’t come second nature to me..

“My music is very much led from an emotional place, that’s how I get creative with it, rather than music theory and music production but if I didn’t work on the music, my songs would just be poetry which isn’t for me!”

As soon as the lyrics come, the music follows and as a consequence, the rapper has worked on developing her vocals and finding her authentic voice.

Her dedication to working on her music has paid off after the singer won the Future Sound of Bristol competition, in collaboration with Factory Studios and Audiotarky.

After uploading her EP to Audiotarky and sharing it on her social media, her music garnered enough attention that it was picked up by the judges who then made her the winner.

“It was amazing! Bristol has such an outstanding music scene and there’s so many creative people,” B of Briz explains.

“I was up against more established artists who are producing amazing work. I’m so grateful to the judges, for them to take a chance on someone as new as me, it’s quite a leap of faith and I hope I can produce something amazing and validate that decision!”

As first place winner, the rapper won £5000 and one month membership at Factory Studios. So what does she plan on doing with this time and money?

“To create the weirdest and most wonderful feminist alt hip hop concept album to ever come out of Bristol! It’s a feminist collection about toxic masculinity and patriarchy more generally.”

The concept album has the working title, Patriarchy- a gentle nudge; Volume 1 – Toxic Masculinity, putting B of Briz’s values and ideals at the very forefront of the album. These themes are important for the rapper who hopes to produce more work set within this realm.

“My working title for the album is Volume 1, because this one is about the male experience of the patriarchy and focuses on how masculinity in a patriarchal system can become toxic.

“I may have another album on the female, feminine, femme perspective, including the complexity of living under patriarchy and the internalised misogyny that comes with that.”

B of Briz has worked incredibly hard to craft space for herself within a music industry that can be impenetrable and inaccessible for many. It is because of this that she has decided to keep her identity anonymous.

“There’s a lot of beauty standards for women in society in general, and for women in the music industry that is intensified. The scrutiny we’re put under is horrible and so that’s partly what the mask is about.

“But it also gives me more artistic freedom to have a bit of a separation between the two identities. I’m not doing it to cultivate a sense of mystery, I’m just trying to cultivate an aesthetic that I find interesting and I hope that the music speaks for itself.”

Main photo: B of Briz

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