Miranda Writes is a female hip-hop artist (or Femcee as she refers to herself ) from Central Jersey with an effortless and flowing rapping style that compares with some of her heroes like Eminem (cited by Miranda as her biggest influence) and Jay Z.
You can also hear the influence of other female rap artists such as Missy Elliott and Lauryn Hill, but above all else she has her own style. Clocking in at nearly five minutes, the track Knowledge of Self is a great showcase for her lyrical prowess, and, like her main influences, she has an innate facility for rhymes and natural rhythm. Rather than rapping about violence and ‘bling’ like some rappers choose to do, Miranda’s message is somewhat deeper.
Beginning with the catchy main hook ‘Breathe in…breathe out..”, Miranda then
launches into her rapid-fire delivery style, and the rhymes flow thick and fast with
deft lyrical skill. The subject matter is society itself and the ‘national acceptance of the
dumbness of humanity’. Her awareness of her talent shines in the lines ‘lyrical sword,
double-die for my family, defying laws of gravity, longevity, totality…’.
Her message is that change is soon about to occur (‘Chasin’ new gears….the rules
about to switch..’) and derides rappers who ‘make the problem all the source, so we
give them this attention’ instead of sending a positive message out to the world. She
also rightly criticizes our obsession with celebrity culture: ‘This is not a prediction or
a radical promotion, merely the truth, I just put it in the open…I don’t care about the
news, or who married who, until it makes a difference I’ll just flip the channel boo…’.
In the next verse she again rightly satirizes gangsta rappers (‘We don’t want to be
leaders, want to be killers’), warning them ‘Open up your eyes or fall victim to the
reaper’. This serious and moral message is what sets Miranda Writes apart from most
rap artists and this clever and catchy track could be the launching pad for a lengthy
career.
