The state of rap’s self-awareness is at an all-time high. Over the past week alone, we’ve seen Drake drop two tracks calling back both Eminem’s ‘Superman’ and Jay-Z’s ‘Song Cry.’ Shortly after, Lil Uzi Vert’s ‘That Way’ channeled turn-of-the-millennia boy group Backstreet Boys’ ‘I Want It That Way.’ Aminé’s ‘Shimmy’ is yet another throwback inspired cut that decidedly looks to mash pieces of ODB’s classic into a raw track fitted for wear in the 2020’s.
It doesn’t feel too long ago that Aminé casually drawled, “Gimme OPB for my ODB, these APC, do your ABC’s, I’m a young dread-head with anxiety” on ‘Reel It In.’ But after a year’s absence, Aminé’s ‘Shimmy’ hits with an amplified sharpness that shows the Portland lyricist leaning into a more aggressive sound helmed by Boi1da, Vinylz, and Pasqué.
Still, the humorous spirit of Ol’ Dirty Bastard is alive in Amine’s commitment to lines like “I got a whip that’s blacker than the nigga from Allstate.” Lines like this sit in the spontaneous headspace of the eternal freestyle, where nothing is overthought and breezily delivered. This is the area where both ODB and Aminé really shine, and like ‘Reel It In,’ this track as a single hooks the ear through its ODB love – even going so far as sampling ODB’s vocals and drawing inspiration from Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version for the song’s artwork.
Compared to Amine’s prior pop rap hits like ‘Reel It In’ or ‘Caroline,’ this track may not have a shared universality – time will tell. As a track paying homage to one of the greats in hip hop, this one knocks with a familiar brashness that Amine is well suited for.