Watch Abangsapau’s music video for personal new single ‘Boyhood’ featuring Charlie Lim

Singaporean rapper Abangsapau has shared a music video for ‘Boyhood’, his latest single featuring singer-songwriter Charlie Lim.

• READ MORE: Zamaera: “When I first started out, there were so few of us that I felt a pressure to be ‘the best female rapper’”

Released on Friday (January 28), ‘Boyhood’ is Abangsapau’s story about the struggles of growing up. The track – led by piano keys and trap percussion – lets the rapper’s emotive lyrics take centre stage, with Lim chiming in for the track’s interlude, chorus and harmonies.

Watch the music video below.

The video for ‘Boyhood’, directed by Daryl Eng Jun, sees Abangsapau return to his former secondary school, where he reflects upon his upbringing. On Instagram, the rapper shared that the video partially came together with the help of his former discipline master, Mr. Vick.

“It’s so funny because [Mr. Vick] was the same person who walked up to my class calling me out to get caned in the school hall – which is where we shot most of the main scenes in the video,” Abangsapau recalled.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ABANGSAPAU (@abangsapau)

Abangsapau also explained that ‘Boyhood’ came together during a trip he took to Los Angeles to work with producer Nabeyin. Local producer ProdByDan later added his own flair, while Abangsapau “wrote and recorded most of the song in one day”, working with Lim in another session.

‘Boyhood’ marks Abangsapau’s first single of the year, and his second with Def Jam Southeast Asia since signing with the label in 2021. In May last year, he released his debut with the label, ‘Hahaha’.

In the press conference to promote that single, Abangsapau revealed that he had completed an entire album about “family, mental health and the world”, but was waiting for a good time to release it.

Charlie Lim – who last featured on Singaporean hip-hop pioneer Sheikh Haikel’s ‘So I Say What’s Up’ in November – is scheduled to hold a concert with his band the Mothership in September at the Esplanade Concert Hall with a number of rising musicians as part of the Esplanade’s year-long PopLore programming.

The post Watch Abangsapau’s music video for personal new single ‘Boyhood’ featuring Charlie Lim appeared first on NME.