Music by Bergman: NiNE8

NiNE8 are music industry misfits. Since banding together nearly six years ago, the London-based collective, comprised of eight uber-talented late teens and twenty-somethings, has been perfecting its DIY sound.

With a series of alt hip-hop releases and sleek production in their arsenal, NiNE8 have gone from music college pals who liked to jam, to international names found jetting to studios in Los Angeles and winning adoration from the likes of Clairo and pop queen Billie Eilish.

NiNE8 was co-founded by rapper and visual artist Lava La Rue in 2014.  La Rue met Biig Piig in music class in college when they were both just 16. Piig is known for her soft vocals, switching between English and Spanish at lightning speed. Also in that music class: Lloyd, aka Mac Wetha, a beatmaker and producer who has worked on solo tracks for Piig.

19-year-old MC and vocalist Nayana IZ first saw La Rue perform at a Grenfell fundraiser, before introducing herself. Then we have rappers, LorenzoRSV, known for his grittier style; Bone Slim, the masked storyteller; Nige, aka DJ Sukha, and model, MC and producer L!BAAN.

The muses of La Musa: Lava La Rue

Lava La Rue is a 20-year-old Londoner who does it all. She founded underground DIY arts collective NiNE8 when she was a teenager with some of her friends, and they have built a creative community that encompasses clothing, visual art, and music.

Her debut EP Letra was released last year, and it’s a richly textured, thoughtful mixture of woozy hip-hop and R&B. Rapping and singing over warm, often funky beats, the world Letra creates is soothing, but listen carefully and she’s tackling important issues ranging from systematic racism to femme representation in hip-hop.

Inspired by unapologetic artists like Erykah Badu, Bahamadia, and Three 6 Mafia’s Gangsta Boo, Lava La Rue is writing her own story in London, building a movement in the most sustainable way possible—from the ground up. This year she has already unveiled two new songs.