Money Talks is the freshest collab from British rappers Dave and Fredo to date, with its stellar production and provocative lyricism.
You can’t have a serious conversation about British rap without mentioning Dave: a legend-in-the-making. The rapper/producer/actor has quickly cemented himself into the rap game by mixing moody trap production with bold personality and lyricism.
Dave’s 2019 LP PSYCHODRAMA took out the Album of the Year award at The Brit Awards as well as the 2019 Hyundai Mercury Prize, making him one of only two artists to achieve this feat. Dave and Fredo’s previous collab, Funky Friday (2018), also hit number #1 on the UK charts, so we knew we were in for a treat.
Since Dave has won a number of awards and his goosebump-inducing single, Paper Cuts, no one’s heard from him. Naturally, the only way to return to the scene was with a massive track. And what better way to return than teaming up with long-time collaborator and London rapper, Fredo? The track they’ve worked on is Money Talks, from Fredo’s newest album, Money Can’t Buy Happiness.
Produced by Dave himself, Money Talks is unsurprisingly a standout track from the needle drop. Minor, atmospheric synth lines glide underneath harsh-hitting trap beats, generating a dead-serious tone. The soundscape gives licence for Dave and Fredo to relentlessly comment on the enigma known as money and the winding, strange places it travels. The pair are decked out in designer gear and deliver their verses with a swaggering British rap flow, of course.
Directed by Edem Wornoo, the Money Talks music video positions the two rappers behind a gargantuan pile of money, which they’ve set alight. The music video plays backwards, slowly revealing the story of how a single note ended up on that pile. This compelling style of storytelling could be straight out of a Christopher Nolan film, as we observe the note go from a plug, then a sex worker, then a preacher, and so on. Corruption, secrecy, and lies. This is the life of hard cash, explicitly detailed.
On top of this visual expośe are Fredo and Dave’s brutally honest experiences with money, relating to their own pastimes with the streets and flinging gear. Dave’s “come a long way from days in the back of the bus with the cheapest deals” and Fredo has “robbers that’s running with me”, so “when you see us, best tuck in the piece”. If you’re after more savage retellings of underground London culture, be sure to check out both of their discographies. You won’t be disappointed.
For now, stream the killer track Money Talks here.
