AJRADICO Shares 'BALLHOG' Music Video

New York's AJRadico shares a new video for "BALLHOG," the latest single from his upcoming project Transit, out February 25th.

In "BALLHOG," AJ pokes fun at the opposing forces against him. He stays true to pop references from Shrek to Wicked, rapping like he's running laps around rivals: "Tweet tweet, but they never left the nest." Built on a charismatic chime melody, the self produced composition feels like it fits only to a protagonist's shoe, too deep in celebration to be reminded of losses or demises.

BALLHOG's video finds AJ and a partner-in-crime looking for a pivot in their approach to making ends meet. Aesthetically, they swap flashiness for authenticity as they depart from central NYC to the outskirts of the city. The most ornate piece - a full Babylon Biker suit - implies a switch in lifestyle post our now emptier pandemic streets. In contrast to previous videos, "Armor" and "Centre," "BALLHOG" paints a different vision of AJ in transit: one more metallicized and expensive. In the end, the duo takes the main stage together, laughing at the come up, and with a little more cash than what they started out with.

21-year-old AJRadico would describe his sound as mythical, personal, and "like a Rorscach test," where psychologists present someone with an ink blot and ask: "What do you see?"

The description, although unconventional, is spot on. AJ takes a refreshingly unique approach to music, treating the world as his own personal beat kit by sampling overheard conversations and "found sound." The result is incredibly cinematic, a testament to AJ's study of film at a Manhattan arts highschool. He cites the producers who influence him as those who have also pushed the boundaries of soundscape: Timbaland, Kanye West (as far as sound design) and Dark Child.

Like so many others who know what it takes to be heard in New York, AJ has merged his unique music lane with that of fashion, performing at the Barclays during NYFW and the Offshore Agency launch party. He has shot with Telfar for their PFW campaign alongside Steve Lacy, Ashton Sanders, Petra Collins and performed at the Tory Burch Foundation dinner alongside collaborator Bakar.

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Photo Credit: Ryan Lowry

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