KOTA THE FRIEND recruits SAMM HENSHAW for his honey-soaked summer banger "Barcelona"
Brooklyn artist and creative Kota The Friend recruits revered South London talent Samm Henshaw for his sun-kissed summer cut “Barcelona” – taken from Kota’s hotly anticipated project Protea dropping Friday 30 th June.
Bursting with eclectic, retro undertones that perfectly encapsulate the blissful summer vibrations, Kota continues to deliver sleek touches across his latest offering; pensive, intricate and self-assured, the multi-hyphenate artist effortlessly glides atop mellow rhythmics and bright-eyed percussion, backed with warm jazz textures that elevate the track into new spaces. Reaching the apex across the infectious hook, the blossoming instrumental sharply dissipates into a hazy hip-hop break, opening pockets for Samm Henshaw to flex his vocal talents, shining with intimacy. The two display an electric synergy, floating in their own introspection, envisioning the sensibilities of self-realisation while inspiring a generation to follow their dreams – “vision just as clear as my mission, gratefully for the way that I’m living.”
Maneuvering through the heart of Brooklyn, NYC, Kota has been surrounded by vibrant cultural influences that have assisted his impulse for rich, self-produced soundscapes and vivid, storytelling lyricism. A standout instrumentalist playing piano, guitar, and trumpet, Kota quickly found success as an independent artist before receiving breakout status in 2020 for his smash record EVERYTHING. Boasting key collaborations with major US stars incl. Joey Bada$$, Bas, and KYLE, Kota entered the BILLBOARD charts as well as gaining critical support from the likes of INTERVIEW MAGAZINE, COMPLEX, ROLLING STONE, and HYPEBEAST –announcing an exciting new talent breaking creative boundaries on an international
level.
Now sitting on 700M streams and 2.2M dedicated monthly listeners, Kota The Friend is carving his own lane as one of the most recognizable and multi-talented voices across the rap landscape. With a plethora of releases confirmed this year, 2023 looks set to be another definitive year in his already high-caliber discography.
