Kobie Dee and Hellcat Speedracer have linked up for a single that could very easily become the sound of the summer.
The proud Gomeroi rapper’s razor sharp storytelling enters a whole new world, backed by the Sydney-based electronica duo’s pounding, club-ready production.
“Maroubra Villian” is an ode to Dee’s pride in his titular hometown, nodding to his roots and the music that was around him growing up. “Lyrically, it’s me connecting back to the Maroubra I grew up in that also had a big party culture,” he said of the song.
“Working with Hellcat Speedracer has honestly been mad fun. Every session we’ve had has been different and exciting and ‘Maroubra Villain’ really pushed me to experiment and step outside my usual way of working. We actually first met at the ARIA Awards last year, had a yarn about music and what we’re both into and straight away we knew we had to make something together and try something new.”
The single was recorded at Dee’s recording and creative space Twenny47 Studios, which was purpose-built for his Maroubra and Southeast communities to access production tools and mentorship, providing a place to hang for young artists.
In last year’s Musicians on Musicians conversation with Stan Walker, Dee said he puts culture at the forefront of his music, even experimenting with incorporating cultural instruments like the didgeridoo and clapsticks into his songs. He said at the time: “As Indigenous people, we’re so creative.”
Supporting the release is a wave of creative content produced by Trav Leslie and Kenfo, giving fans a new way to connect beyond the music. There’s an animated lyric video by Elliot Grancha, transforming Dee’s words into a bold cartoon world.
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The release rollout also includes an exclusive three-part content series by yuth2yuth and Travis Villain, following Dee and his community as they begin to unravel the mystery behind this larger than life “Maroubra Villain”.
With Dee’s catalogue flexing over 80 million streams, gold-certified singles, festival sets at Splendour in the Grass, Listen Out and Spilt Milk, and Hellcat Speedracer’s growing reputation for pushing the boundaries with high-voltage live shows and bold collabs, this release is a perfect storm of hip-hop storytelling and electronic chaos.
Whether blasting out of a car speaker or shaking festival stages, “Maroubra Villain” is bound to move bodies and stir the energy.
Kobie Dee and Hellcat Speedracer’s “Maroubra Villain” is out now.
