Blind, the key single from OG Keemo’s deluxe EP, BERSERKER +, almost instantly shot past 1 million streams. Their audience, ravenous for another cut of cinematically adrenalised, hard-hitting hip-hop, were evidently rewarded by the storming juggernaut of a rap anthem that growls through bilingual bars set against an almost avant-garde, ornately disquieting orchestral score in place of archetypal hip-hop architecture.
OG Keemo breezed in in haute couture, buttoned up with bloodied fists. Raising grimy-style bars into something hotter than hell, Blind lands as ominous as a death stare from the anti-Christ, carrying the violent elegance that has made Karim Joel Martin one of German rap’s most vital lyricists.
Since Mann Beisst Hund debuted at number 3 on the German album charts, crossed 113 million Spotify streams and sold over 10,000 vinyl copies, Keemo has built a career around concept, patience and cultural weight. Fieber reached number 1, The Needle Drop paid attention, COLORS welcomed him twice, the BBC interviewed him as its first German rapper guest, and collaborations with Jorja Smith, WDR Orchestra and PS Hitsquad widened the radius without diluting the vision. With Funkvater Frank, he has reversed streaming-era logic by releasing BERSERKER + before the album itself, announcing BERSERKER through 6,000 physical flyers at Südüd Festival.
If there could be one man capable of standing against the algorithm alone, our money would be on OG Keemo; he’s the ultimate heavyweight.
Blind is now available to stream on all major platforms via this link.
Review by Amelia Vandergast