Interview
The Next 5: GERDNANG
"We see ourselves being the hottest young rapper crew in all of Vietnam in the near future.”
Vietnam’s GERDNANG presents a very interesting case. This collection [they call themselves a gang] of MCs have all had some degree of success in their solo careers. In the case of gang leader HIEUTHUHAI a lot of success – as he blew up on the King of Rap show and has had several big hits, some with other GERDNANG members. But when they come together as GERDNANG they are a gang of nerds [get it?] who love making music and sometimes veer to the Pop side of things but are deeply rooted in Hip Hop.
The rest of the gang are all respected MCs – MANBO, HURRYKNG, REX, and Negav, plus their producer Kewtiie. They recently dropped a club-banging Trap single ‘Mamma Mia’ that’s already surpassed a million views on YouTube, and an earlier single by HIEUTHUHAI and MANBO, ‘CUA’ has surpassed eight million views.
One thing about the gang is that their music videos are always highly entertaining, and they have a funny, carefree approach to shooting them. It’s refreshing to see rappers who don’t take themselves too seriously and aren’t trying to front like they’re billionaires. I guess that’s the nerd part. We look forward to seeing whatever they shoot in the studio or wherever, as it’s bound to be great. We predict big things for these boys in 2022 and 2023.
You’ve been selected by LiFTED and Jagermeister as one of The Next 5 Asian artists to break out this year. How does that feel?
We feel very honored and appreciate the support that LiFTED has given for the past several years as well as this opportunity that Jagermeister has presented. It’s an honor and a pleasure to be able to create new music for you guys.
As part of The Next 5 you’ll receive a Creative Grant to help you push forward in your career. What will you spend the money on?
Once we receive the money the first thing we will do is update the studio with a few new toys, possibly a new mic or sound card. The remaining amount we haven’t decided on yet, but it will probably go towards a music video in the near future.
Tell us about your local Hip Hop scene and how you plan to make moves in ’22-’23?
The Hip Hop scene here in Vietnam is growing faster than ever, and artists are competing nonstop to drop the next big hit with flashy and high-investment projects, so this money will come in handy. As a collective GERDNANG is planning to drop more collective projects to revamp the name after going a bit quiet for the past year.
At LiFTED we’re all about cross-border collaboration and linking the Asian Hip Hop scenes together. Jagermeister has a similar vision, representing each of these vibrant markets across Asia. What is your vision for yourself in the Asian Hip Hop game?
Here at GERDNANG, we’re always striving for the next, newest things. With that being said, we are always open to international collabs that would further benefit and spread the Vietnamese culture across the world. We see ourselves being the hottest young rapper crew in all of Vietnam in the near future.
What are you working on RIGHT NOW?
As of right now a lot of GERDNANG members are working on their solo projects. Our goal for this year is for everyone to drop their own personal album or EP on top of the group projects.
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