Latest posts by Dahlia Saenz
(see all)The first time I set ears upon John Glacier, I was thousands of miles from home- a stranger living in a country I had never set foot in. As her track “Money Shows” chimed into my brain, Glacier’s voice lulled me into deep introspection. While heavily plucked notes pierce each eighth of 77 beats per minute, coarse verses depict the story of an untethered girl. She instructs listeners to “float like the water flows,” and to “never stay running where the money goes,” in the search for self-agency. This collaboration with cyber-pop producer Eartheater, splendidly showcases the existential, slowed-down, and contemplative hip-hop this Hackney-born artist makes. Let me put you onto an artist who anchored me in unrecognizable terrain.
John Glacier’s roots branch out from the boroughs of London to the lush, northwestern tropical region of Jamaica, where her parents are from. Growing up surrounded by genres like gospel, soca, R&B, and dancehall, fragments of each tint the experimental rap music she magically brews. John Glacier identifies as a poet above all else, and in a household of seven children, she found autonomy in prose, verse, and spoken word. She also uses these literary devices to cope with the debilitating symptoms of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. Art became her escape from this diagnosis, and for listeners such as myself, a comfort in a restlessly changing world.
“Dancing in the Rain,” a track off of her latest album Like a Ribbon, is embellished by the familiar snappy snare, high-hat, and sharp rim shots of U.K. drill. “I’ll be dancin’ down the streets, they think I’m insane,” she declares over a deeply resounding bass drum as she elaborates on her personal vision of freedom. John Glacier makes music for those who wonder and ruminate on the everydayness of life. Rain, clouds, and the ocean color her sound, transmuting listeners into the rawness of her personal experiences and allowing them to see the world as she does. Keep an eye out for this jarring rapper while she creates alongside Sampha, Vegyn, and Flume- and goes as far as writing poetry for high-fashion campaigns.