While German rap has always been raw, gritty, and authentic, “Krokodil Tränen” is a brutally honest commentary on how the genre has become increasingly theatrical courtesy of Raubtier Kollektiv. Starting with the opening note, the song hits you like an alarm clock, matching the venomous lyrical fire with a menacing, bass-heavy beat that lets you know this is not to be trifled with.
With an ice-cold, mocking laughter opening the track, Raubtier Kollektiv serves as a statement of intent, and it’s alive with tearing open the fake depression and calculated openness that fuel contemporary rap. The artist siphons off the park of personal trauma that some expose for clicks, to which real-life consequences are experienced behind walls and on prisoner lines, over trap hi hats snap like whips even as low horns slither under skin. Each bar hits hard with a sharp mixture of rugged authenticity and keen observations that feel both ear-biting but necessary.
This is a social observation packed in a raw, uncut street poetry format. Raubtier Kollektiv juxtaposes Instagram sob stories with complex, slick street reality in response to the mental illness market that fuels the authenticity angle of too many hip-hop artists. The track denounces the culture of authenticity and reminds audiences of what German rap once stood for as realness, toughness, and experience.
The production matches that aggressive energy spot-on. Every hi-hat and synth stab is meticulously crafted to give the lyrics that much more urgency and contempt. It’s a playlist built for the real talk, the real hate, and rap that won’t concede to social media aesthetics. The new release from Raubtier Kollektiv is a testament to confrontational storytelling, a song that rips through. As such, if you consider the deluge of fake-deep that occurs now in the rap or would like to hear an honest street perspective from German hip-hop, touch his tape because it’s absolutely what is necessary.
Follow Raubtier Kollektiv on | Spotify |
