Who: Tehn Diamond is a young singer/songwriter/rapper from Zimbabwe. The name is combination of his ?rst name “Tendai” and the nickname “Diamond” which he takes to mean, “Be grateful, but shine.” His alter ego/virtual partner name’s is “Hash Brown”.
How Did I Discover Him: In one of my Twitter questions, I asked a rather simple question about mixtape promotions. He answered my question and in return, I decided to listen to his mixtape. It took me a while to get to it, but he was patience. Now, I find myself reciting some lines from his delivery.
First Impression: Well, I download the mixtape, thinking he was a Howard University student (First impression for a reason) and expected the theme of college student life. While I was somewhat right about the theme of the mixtape, I was caught off guard him not being a “state-sider” when “Lucifer” freestyle hit my ears with lyrics proclaiming “oh no! He’s not American! He’s not a thug or a gangsta or anything! So why the hell is he rapping then? In fact I heard he’s an African!” This is a true mixtape since no song runs over 4 minutes (the longest song is “No Lie”, which is 15 seconds under 4 minutes). Also in true mixtape fashion, expect a lot of scratches, loops, promos, skits, the whole nine yards. While he raps (his flow is unique, not to hard to follow, even when he does the rapid-fire chants) and sings, I’m wondering if he can rock a full album… or if he even wants to make a full album. Only time will tell.
Hard Hitting Tracks: While he’s got a nice flow, one got to wonder how hard can one rap on a recycled beat, especially when the beats were use by Nas and Jay-Z? The real question is, can he make the tracks his own? Well, while he did stick with the chorus of Nas’ “Hero” and the flow of Jay-Z’s “Lucifer”, he managed to do the beat justice with his brand of lyrics. In “Hero” he sticks with Country Pride and with “Lucifer”, he plays comical with his marketability as an African college student rapper.
With that said, the hardest track I think that suits him is the horn blaring, rapid-fire “4 Minute Bar Exam.” However, the title itself is misleading since the song length is actually 2:14 long. This song’s subject? The usual hip-hop staple; ego-driven bravo.
While the mixtape is a good listen, it just leaves you thirsty for more. With songs ending too quickly, you can’t help but wonder what else is in store from this artist.
How to get it: Since it’s a mixtape, you can download it for free from his official website. Just look for the download link, unzip and enjoy.
So, get that mixtape and brag that you just music tastes just went global. Just make sure to actually read a thing or two about Zimbabwe. There’ not a lot of African references, but expanding your mind is strongly urge here on Thought Remixer.
Tehn Diamond’s Twitter :: Tehn Diamond’s MySpace :: Hash Brown Don’t Frown (Official Web Site)
#MusicMondays – Every Monday (when I get the free time), I will share music and showcasing artists who’s making it happen for themselves. Check out Thought Remixer on Mondays for new artists.
If you’re an artist and would like to be consider, simply contact me via the contact page or upload your music on the ride side of the blog. All music will be review to, chart on Last.FM and if I like it, I’ll write a post about it. Of course, if you paid attention to the last few artists in this series, they never really asked me to review their music, I asked them. So, you might want to be creative with your approach.
