The state of hip hop has moved a fair distance since its incepted 90s boom-bap disposition. Amongst this constant evolution comes HVNCOQ, an up-and-coming hip hop artist whose versatility spans across every facet of the genre. Drawing inspiration from Mos Def to Night Lovell to Chance the Rapper, his melodious tone effortlessly flows over spacey trap beats and electronic synths. This underground buzz caused WVS to pounce on the New Zealand-born, Melbourne-raised artist, signing him well in advance of his debut single “Out Of My Mind”.

“Out of My Mind” first came together when HVNCOQ randomly met Matix, a LA producer late at night in a Melbourne club. They instantly clicked and chatted briefly as he discovered that Matix produced, it was fate as HVNCOQ was coincidentally going to L.A. later that week.

They then met up a month later at Matix’s house in Silver Lake, Los Angeles, where the track “Out of My Mind”, was quickly created within a few hours of meeting. "Out of My Mind is about the motions I went through after being lead on by someone I really cared for; from hurt to angry to self destructive to finally realising my own self worth."

“Out of My Mind” is the first single from HVNCOQ’s debut EP due for release in early 2018, be prepared to see the Ethiopian-Australian’s name take over the continent