Single: Nef The Pharaoh – “86” ft. Cuban Doll & ALLBLACK

The Bay Area Wave Leader Shares the Complex-Premiered Single From the Upcoming The Big Chang Theory, Nef’s Debut Album

8.2.2018

Critical Praise:

“It’s been nearly three years since Nef The Pharaoh took the Bay Area by storm with his breakout hit ‘Big Tymin’.’ Since then, under the tutelage of E-40, the South Vallejo rapper has become an ambassador of the region in his own right, championing artists like SOB X RBE, OMB Peezy, and others.” – The FADER

20 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2016 – Neffy Got Wings (#3) – FACT

2016 was the West Coast’s time to shine, and few rappers shined as brightly as Nef – FACT

“Neffy Got Wings is the album of the week” – Stereogum

“…the best rapper from Vallejo since the last great rapper from Vallejo” – Jeff Weiss

“…as a rapper, [Nef the Pharaoh] lets the energy lead and the bars follow, boasting and flexing with the kinds of memorable banalities that make up some of hip-hop’s best yet least-celebrated moments.” –Pitchfork

“Nef The Pharaoh is the Bay Area’s next up.” – HotNewHipHop

“Nef the Pharaoh runs neck-and-neck with Kodak Black as the most promising up-and-coming rapper who can’t yet rent a car.” – SPIN

“There may be no rapper working right now who brings more good cheer and positive vibes than Vallejo’s Nef the Pharaoh” – Noisey

The Single:

Wielding an animated delivery and a sharp and witty pen, Vallejo’s Nef The Pharaoh is the crown prince of Bay Area rap. Running roughshod over a hyperactive neo-hyphy slapper, Nef flexes his lyrical muscles on “86,” his new single. Mean-mugging atop rubbery bass and fat synths, Nef rails against bouncers and shady club-owners who try to kick him out: “I seen you tuck your chains in when we hit the club/You was glad I got kicked out, the life of a scrub/Fuck that shit, Imma turn up in the parking lot/Can’t even do a show at home if I ain’t have my glock.” Never one to fly solo, Nef runs up on the establishment with backup, recruiting Cuban Doll, who delivers a playful 8-bars about sneaking her weapon into the club, and calling up rising Oakland star ALLBLACK for fiercely energetic cameo. Premiered by Complex, “86” is the latest single off the upcoming The Big Chang Theory, following the menacing “Big Boss Chang,” which earned a video premiere in The FADER last week.

“I made the song after they 86’d me out the Cromwell in Vegas lol. So it’s a true story,” Nef told Complex.

After building up a massive following on the West Coast with a series of popular mixtapes, three acclaimed EPs, and several radio singles, the KILFMB chief is ready to release The Big Chang Theory, his upcoming debut studio album. Demonstrating the maturity and wisdom that comes from experience as a leader in the rap game, The Big Chang Theory is a wide-ranging and self-assured project. Showing off his skills over glistening Bay Area beats, Nef flexes on his success, stunts on lesser emcees, and brags about his rhyming prowess, but also finds the time to reflect on his past, to ruminate on social issues such as police violence, and ponder the future of his young daughter. Featuring appearances from Dej Loaf, OMB Peezy, ALLBLACK, Cuban Doll, and more, The Big Chang Theory arrives on August 10th via KILFMB / Sick Wid It / EMPIRE.

Breaking through with his self-titled 2015 EP and its hit single “Big Tymin‘,” the 23-year-old Nef The Pharaoh quickly established himself as one of the most unique and popular emcees in the Bay. Signed to E-40’s Sick Wid It Records, the charismatic emcee is a fixture on regional radio, releasing an acclaimed collaborative EP with Cardo Got Wingz (Kendrick Lamar, Drake) in 2016 and hitting in 2017 with “Bling Blaow,” which featured Slimmy B of SOB x RBE. Earlier this month, Nef shared Porter2Grape, an action-packed 5-track collaborative EP with L.A. rapper 03 Greedo. Featuring appearances from ALLBLACK and singer Chris O’Bannon, the blistering EP, featuring the Complex-premiered single “Ball Out,” is currently available for stream and purchase via EMPIRE.

Listen to “86” ft. ALLBLACK & Cuban Doll: https://soundcloud.com/nefidelaphante/86-feat-cuban-doll-allblack // https://Empire.lnk.to/86

Check out the Complex premiere: https://www.complex.com/music/2018/08/premiere-nef-the-pharaoh-cuban-doll-allblack-86

Pre-order The Big Chang Theory:
SmartURL: https://Empire.lnk.to/TheBigChangTheory
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-big-chang-theory/1415129927?ls=1&app=itunes

The Big Chang Theory tracklist:

1. Heads Up (ft. OMB Peezy)
2. Lefty
3. A (ft. JT The 4th)
4. Boostin
5. Big Boss Chang
6. 86 (ft. ALLBLACK & Cuban Doll)
7. Huh (ft. Yakki)
8. Knock Down A Fan
9. What We Have (ft. Dej Loaf)
10. Tokyo Driftin (ft. Raymond McMahon)
11. Bsisso
12. Totally Different
13. That Was God (ft. Jay Brown & Lesia Brown)

Please contact Michelle or Scott for more info.

The Background:

Praised by Jeff Weiss as “the best rapper from Vallejo since the last great rapper from Vallejo,” the legend Mac Dre being his predecessor, 21 -year-old Nef The Pharaoh is one of the Bay Area’s most exciting young emcees. Signed to E-40‘s Sick Wid It Records, Nef The Pharaoh delivered his debut retail release, a self-titled EP, in November 2015 to high critical praise. Featuring the breakthrough radio hit “Big Tymin’,” which charted at #34 on San Francisco’s 106 KMEL‘s Top 106 Songs of 2015 and earned more than 7.7 million views on YouTube, the Nef The Pharaoh EP firmly established the rapper on the national scene. Nef followed his breakthrough project by joining producer Cardo for Neffy Got Wings, a collaborative EP which released in January, and by accompanying G-Eazy, A$AP Ferg, and Marc E. Bassy on the national When It’s Dark Out Tour. Nef followed up the EP with Fresh Outta Space 3, a “very Bay Area-y” mixtape that turned heads with its synthesis of regional sounds. In 2017, Nef released The Chang Project, featuring the hit single “Bling Blaow,” performed at Rolling Loud Bay Area and Rolling Loud Southern California and collaborated with OMB Peezy, SOB x RBE, and many more. His next project, The Boss Chang Theory, releases in 2018.