Sampa The Great has returned with her new single ‘Lane‘, featuring US rapper Denzel Curry. Blurring the lines between trap beats, multi-layered feathery melodies, and hip hop bars, ‘Lane’ is the first single Sampa the Great is releasing with Loma Vista, and the first taste of her new music since 2019’s debut album, The Return.
After relocating home to Zambia during the pandemic, Sampa reconnected with a different side of herself, one closer to the younger artistry that was nourished growing up in Africa. ‘Lane‘ is Sampa The Great’s call out to create and explore her own lanes and go beyond what’s prescribed without judgement.
Accompanying the song is a video directed by Rochelle Rhembard and Imraan Christian. A long-form piece, book-ended and balanced with the spoken-word piece ‘Origin‘ is a reintroduction. From the depths of an underground cave, we are first introduced to Eve: the persona and blueprint of Sampa’s highest version of self. From a juxtaposition of four-walled concrete rooms to Sampa’s younger self, to children in black suits running through nature with automatic weapons in hand, we follow the story of Sampa’s newest journey. Denzel Curry completes the narrative in a virtual reality headset, rapping in time to spell out a dynamic ending.
Sampa The Great says of ‘Lane’: “We’re not going to stay in one lane, we’re going to create multiple ones… My truest self encourages me to explore different lanes, and go beyond what I think I know of myself.”
LIVE DATES
June 5 – London, UK – Cross The Tracks Festival-Brockwell Park
June 10 – Barcelona, Spain – PRIMAVERA SOUND BARCELONA – Parc Del Forum
June 11 – Mannhein, Germany – Maifeld Derby – Maimarktgelände
June 12 – Hilvarenbeek, The Netherlands – Best Kept Secret Festival – Beekse Bergan
June 18 – Lyon, France – Inversion Fest – Matmut Stadium
June 19 – Dublin, Ireland – Body & Soul – Ballinlough Castle
June 25 – Pilton, UK – Glastonbury festival – Worthy Farm
June 26 – Brussels, Belgium – Couler Café – Passerelle du parc d’Osseghem
June 29 – Gdynia, Poland – Open’er Festival – Gdynia-Kosakowo Airport
July 1 – Roskilde, Denmark – Roskilde – Festivalpladsen
July 2 – Marmande, France – Garorock – Parc De La Filhole
July 3 – Koln, Germany – Sumemrjam Festival – Fuehlinger See- Regattainsel
Photo credit: Travys Owen
