In July, Rico Nasty unveiled her explosive new album Las Ruinas to follow up her critically-acclaimed debut Nightmare Vacation which arrived in 2020. Las Ruinas arrived after she rolled out infectious singles like “Blow Me,” “Intrusive,” and “Black Punk,” which quickly built up the anticipation for the record. Today, she’s back to share the eerie music video for the track “Gotsta Get Paid.”
The chaotic video watches Nasty as she walks through different landscapes. At one point, she’s at the top of a cliff overlooking an unreal mountain range; at another, she’s dancing in the sunlit woods. It’s trippy and includes scenes with lots of fire and ice, which sums up the eclectic nature of her sound as she skids between hyperpop, hip-hop, and punk unpredictably.
Since releasing Las Ruinas, Nasty was on Megan Thee Stallion’s new album Traumazine for the song “Scary,” which came out last month when Megan dropped the LP with no warning. Shortly before Las Ruinas was unleashed, Nasty was also recruited by Fred Again for a remix of his track “Jungle.”
Check out the video for “Gotsta Get Paid” above.
Rico Nasty is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
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We’re at the point where it’s both reductive and inadequate to call Rico Nasty just a rapper. And Rico’s new mixtape, Las Ruinas, is exhibit A in the argument that what the Maryland artist does is way too expansive, creative, and intriguing to be constrained to the labels it has been given so far. Some of those labels include punk-rap, emo-trap, scream-rap, and sugar trap – the last term Rico’s own, coined on one of her first mixtapes. Las Ruinas explodes those paradigms, throwing Paramore, Run-DMC, Lil Uzi Vert, and Nicki Minaj into a blender and letting it rip, creating something entirely different from any of its influences.
In the run-up to the release, Rico insinuated that the tape would show a softer side of the brash, ‘80s-inspired artist than her debut album, Nightmare Vacation. Insomuch as it accomplishes this mission, there’s still a lot of yelling – which is actually a good thing. When artists try to get confessional, they can sometimes lean too heavily into the emotion, making for a mawkish, melodramatic affair. Rather than getting bogged down by maudlin ballads, Las Ruinas opts to expand the sonic palette of its predecessor, which in turn allows Rico to try new things without really leaving her lane. It’s a neat trick.
Part of it is that Rico’s lane is really wide. She’s already established herself in the hyperpop lane, where plenty of these new tracks reside. The album opens with “Intrusive,” all warped-synths and overblown bass kicks, with Rico rasping her way through the uptempo track, occasionally embellished with spacey vocal effects. “Black Punk,” meanwhile, takes the tempo down a tick and adds some Korn-ish guitar – it’s not exactly punk, or nu-metal, but it’s clearly influenced by both. The flavor of Rico’s own secret sauce is what ties it all together and keeps any single element from dominating the mix.
The closest she comes to a recognizable, single genre effort is the emphatic “Blow Me,” which borrows the thumping drums of Memphis trap with a hypnotic instrumental loop from the Atlanta strain, then finds Rico splitting the difference between her “Own It” flow and the one from “Fashion Week” for a cavalier call-out to challengers. It’s an impressive show of her improvement since Nightmare Vacation, as she mocks, “Your bitch ain’t bad, she a eyesore / Truth hurts, baby, you should lie more.” It’s just one of a litany of guffaw-worthy rhymes on the album, and you can almost hear her snickering as she says them.
Rico even manages to put her own specific twist on a rising trend with “Jungle,” Rico’s remix of Fred Again..’s pulse-pounding house jam. Remember when I said Black people were coming back to reclaim dance music? Rico definitely got the memo. What’s truly awesome about the confidence and comfort she displays on this track is that she appears just as cozy on Nirvana-esque ballad “Easy,” the dreamy “Focus On Me,” and the album’s closer, “Chicken Nugget.”
The latter, an ode to her son Cameron, is a true triumph; in it, Rico opens up about how Cam opened up her own world. “Now I see why my mama yelled at me,” she reflects. “I can see how she was obsessed with me.” It’s exactly the sort of vulnerability peeking out of the thrash-rapper facade that strengthens her image as a badass. There’s real passion and heartache – the kind born of the implied and well-known struggles of motherhood, highlighted by the usual teenage angst – fueling her outbursts. At the same time, by pulling off the mask, even slightly, Rico makes herself more relatable, more endearing, and more human than many of her peers in the SoundCloud-bred, screamo-rap scene, whose “rage” has always struck me as at least a little bit manufactured.
The eclecticism displayed on Las Ruinas might leech some of its replay value or turn off listeners looking for a more consistent listening experience. It’s cohesive but chaotic, so throwing it on when you’re in one mood might mean you have to skip around to find the tracks that suit that mood. While it’s far from a road trip staple or a surefire party starter, there’s lots here to love – most of all, its star, who proudly made this album for herself, doing exactly what she wanted to do. Its real value might be in once again pushing open the boundaries for the next weird little kid who doesn’t want to stick to one thing but take up every available inch of whatever lane they drive in.
Las Ruinas is out now on Atlantic Records. Get it here.
Rico Nasty is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Rico Nasty is well-known for her brash energy and punk-influenced rasp of a voice, but she’s also equally well-known for her unique sense of style. Rico’s ‘fits run the gamut from thrashed-out baby doll outfits — like Clueless with a hardcore makeover — to catwalk-ready haute couture. In her new video for “Blow Me,” she showcases her style with a simple setup, strutting on a treadmill against a white background as she cycles seamlessly through a series of wild ensembles.
“Blow Me” is the latest single from Rico’s upcoming album Las Ruinas, which is due on July 22 through Atlantic Records. Although it’s the follow-up to her debut album Nightmare Vacation, it’s said to be much lighter in comparison. While that suggests a return to the airy “sugar trap” of her early mixtapes, it’s clear from previously released tracks like “Black Punk,” “Blow Me,” “Skullflower,” and “Vaderz” that “lighter” is relative when it comes to Rico Nasty. The project will also feature appearances from fellow genre benders Bktherula, Teezo Touchdown, and Marshmello, along with a remix of Fred Again’s “Jungle.”
Watch Rico Nasty’s “Blow Me” video above. Las Ruinas is due on 7/22 on Atlantic Records.
Rico Nasty is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
It’s been about a year and a half since Rico Nasty’s debut album, that being 2020’s Nightmare Vacation. That effort checked in with 16 songs and features from Don Toliver, Gucci Mane, Amine, Trippie Redd, Ppcocaine, Sukihana, and Rubi Rose. Over the last 18 months, Rico has shared music that are both connected and free from her upcoming body of work, and with just a few days until its release, Rico shares the official tracklist for it.
Las Ruinas, Rico’s upcoming second album, is set to arrive on July 22. The project will include 17 songs and it will be much lighter compared to Nightmare Vacation as its includes guest appearances from Bktherula, Teezo Touchdown, and Marshmello. Las Ruinas also includes the already released remix to Fred Again’s “Jungle,” “Skullflower,” “Black Punk,” “Intrusive,” and “Vaderz.”
You can view the full tracklist for Las Ruinas below.
Rico Nasty has returned to her true form. On her newest track, “Skullflower,” she embraces the weirdness for which her fans know and love her, while denouncing the need for validation within the mainstream.
On “Skullflower,” the latest from her upcoming album, Las Ruinas, Nasty delivers her signature yell-rapping stylings in a slightly pitched-up form, over a bubbly, synth-pop- and alternative-inspired beat, reminiscent of the days of MySpace pop-punk. In the song’s accompanying music video, Nasty is seen wearing a long, lush, gray wig, along with a maid uniform, all of which make for a beautiful contrast as she frolics through a field of sunflowers.
While fans have tweeted their support for the song and its video, Nasty couldn’t help but notice that she had received some hate. “Everyone hates the new song but eye love it,” said Nasty in a tweet, “and besides when was I ever gonna have a SUNFLOWER FIELD LIKE THAT AND A SONG CALLED SKULLFLOWER AT THE SAME TIME.”
Nasty later followed up, noting that she is no longer making music to appeal to the masses, writing, “Im not tryna go number one. Im just making music that I like again. If you don’t get it. Then don’t. Im not about to waste my entire career pleasing people, that’s not what I’m here for. I hope you respect that.
Everyone hates the new song but eye love it and besides when was I ever gonna have a SUNFLOWER FIELD LIKE THAT AND A SONG CALLED SKULLFLOWER AT THE SAME TIME .
Im not tryna go number one . Im just making music that I like again . If you don’t get it . Then don’t . Im not about to waste my entire career pleasing people , that’s not what I’m here for . I hope you respect that .
and besides when was I ever gonna have a SUNFLOWER FIELD LIKE THAT AND A SONG CALLED SKULLFLOWER AT THE SAME TIME .