Author: @karabrazey20 (Twitter)
Nicki Minaj is music. The Queen of Music. Any naysayers can take their arguments to their local Witcher for debate. Nicki has proven and demonstrated time and time again, her relevancy in not only the hip-hop genre but within music as a whole. Transcending above the title of rapper and the tight confines of the female rap subgenre. Nicki has proven herself to be a musical creative, a master of conceptualizing sounds and words into harmonic form. Her ability to “catch” the beat, bend it to her will, while commanding it with her voice, is what makes Nicki a dynamic artist. Leagues beyond her current and past peers, who are forcibly being straddled to her back. She is living proof of what investing and honing your God given talent will sound like in the years to come.
Nicki Minaj, Maluma and Myriam Fares are all featured on the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Official Soundtrack. The track titled “Tukoh Taka”, is the Official Fan Festival anthem for the month-long football (soccer) tournament. “Tukoh Taka” is an Arabic term translated to “knock knock” or “click clack” in English. Hopefully, that explains the importance of the chorus.
An anthem is intended to get the crowd shouting in unison with the expectation of unity in that moment. And unity is what “Tukoh Taka” brings. Making it the 1st World Cup song to feature artist of English, Spanish and Arabic speaking countries on one song. A celebratory anthem bridging the language barrier thru music and sports.
First, let’s get into that beat! It’s a reggaetón and house music inspired beat that you can literally feel. Which is what makes the three-artist appearance on this track, so much more special. Nicki Minaj is Trinidadian-American, Maluma is Colombian, and Myriam is Lebanese; they worked that beat till nothing was left. The “Tukoh Taka” instrumental is proof that language will never be a barrier when it comes to music. Also, proof real artist, REAL ARTIST, have no limitations when it comes to their artistry.
“Tukoh Taka” opens with Myriam Fares singing the chorus and leads into Minaj’s verse. Nicki raps her verse in both English and Spanish. A true definition of a dynamic artist. This wasn’t an extremely lyrical verse and it didn’t have to be. “Tukoh Taka” was intended to be an anthem-to uplift, empower and most of all, bring joy. That’s where the power of being a dynamic artist comes in to play. For “Tukoh Taka”, Nicki is putting 3 of her dynamics on display:
Myriam comes back with the chorus leading into Maluma’s verse. Maluma has such smooth vocals. Listening to some of his other music, I understand why he is a top selling Latin artist. His music is a blend of reggaetón and Latin trap. Maluma’s voice is charismatic and just pulls you in…smooth like butter. The chorus comes back to Myriam and she leads into her infectious verse.
Myriam is Arabic speaking, so I wasn’t familiar with her or her music at all. But don’t worry, I took a little dive into her discography as well. She is a very talented singer. Obviously, I love Nicki and she slaughtered her verse, but the standout verse is a toss-up between the smoothness of Maluma’s vocals and Myriam’s anthem power vocals.
I love “Tukoh Taka” and it’s on repeat with SFG on all my devices. I’m not Spanish or Arabic speaking, but there is something about good music and real artistry that is undeniable. Nicki has been at the forefront of female rappers expanding their artistry and skills, while remaining the most unappreciated in hip-hop culture. While one song won’t change a lot of the hip-hop heads minds or give her the respect she deserves, thankfully Nicki has positioned herself as a global musical force.
“Tukoh Taka” was accompanied with visuals and it didn’t disappoint. Set against a desert back drop, the video opens with Myriam singing the chorus with her background dancers as a bus is driving thru the sand. The camera shows Maluma standing and gyrating his hips a little and Nicki on the bus. Various images of football being played are flashed across the screen.
Donned in a black corset with those fabulous black inches, Nicki lights the camera up against her background dancers dressed in gold. She looked flawless. Those curves, her boobs and just the overall look of an icon. Nicki was also styled by our very own barb, Khalil. Congratulations, Khalil, you nailed that look on The Queen and her makeup was top tier!
Maluma starts his verse against the desert backdrop with dancers flanked alongside of him. Then the images of football appear throughout his verse. Myriam comes thru with the hips shaking. She can be seen standing atop of the bus and she will leave you in awe at the way she is able to move her body so fluidly.
“Tukoh Taka” is an amazing fun song and the video was intended in my opinion to accentuate that. Using music to bring people together as a unifier. An opportunity to look past the lines of culture, race and economic status and appreciate the moment. Myriam sings “Salam” in the 2nd part of her verse and that word translates to peace in English; exactly what we need. Don’t let ignorance and hate be the reason you missed out on this moment. The only thing hate affects is your face and ignorance stunts the brain.
Nicki’s musical versatility is not to just be used for social media drags. I’m unsure as to why this is happening within this fanbase, but it needs to stop. Nicki puts a lot of work into her artistry and has shared her most intimate moments of motherhood with her fans, the least we can do is return the love and stream the music. Respect the woman and respect the artistry.
To Nicki, you executed your verse with precision. The flawless switch from Patois, to English and Spanish is impeccable. You are the standard bearer of female rap and a trailblazer for hip-hop and black culture. You are quite literally the man. The only female rapper to be featured on a World Cup Soundtrack and the only female rapper to get a song with Spanish and Arabic singing artist to #1 on iTunes. Nicki, you owned 2022.