Coco Solid

Coco Solid (born Jessica Hansell in Auckland, New Zealand) is a musician, multidisciplinary writer, artist and academic of Māori and German Samoan descent. Her musical style is a mixture of hip hop, experimental, disco, techno and electronica.^[1] Coming from a background of zines and underground comics in New Zealand, she is also a screenwriter, poet, essayist, journalist and the writer/co-director of Māori cartoon sitcom Aroha Bridge. In 2018 Hansell became a Fulbright scholar^[2] studying at the University of Hawai'i at the Center of Pacific Island Studies. She works with multiple collaborators in both her home country and across the globe.

Music (early work)

Coco Solid began her music career as a member of an Auckland rap/punk group called The Pussies in the early 2000's. She continued to make music as a solo artist, recruiting the late ALC5 (a punk DIY producer from Wanganui) Erik Ultimate (Benjamin Buchanan) and a bootybass DJ originally from Malaysia, DJ Han Baby. Under this line-up Coco Solid released over five albums/tapes in quick succession touring to the US, Europe and attending SXSW in 2006. This era proved to be key for the artist as the Austin Chronicle announced her lyricist of the festival and she appeared in Flight Of The Conchords documentary Flight of the Conchords: A Texas Odyssey. Solid was named in the top 10 albums of 2005, 2006 and 2007 in The Sunday Star-Times, The Listener or on Radio New Zealand National.^[3] New York rapper Princess Superstar has covered the hook of Denim & Leather in her song, Monday Morning.^[4]

Solid's single "Crimefighters" received the New Zealand college radio BNet Award for "Best Hip Hop Track" award in 2007 after reaching No. 1 on BNet student radio charts nationally, where Coco Solid still credits her strongest fanbase and chart positions. ^[5] Having supported Sway, TTC, Spankrock and The Rogers Sisters, Girl Talk, Avenue D, The 5.6.7.8's and the King Brothers around the world, in 2008 Coco Solid released her double album 'The Radical Bad Attack'. This was considered a breakout work for the artist and shortly after she was accepted into the Red Bull Music Academy in Barcelona.

Music (to current day)

At the Red Bull Music Academy Coco Solid met Danish producer Robin Hannibal and the two formed Parallel Dance Ensemble. The pair went on to release a slew of singles, records and remixes under German label Permanent Vacation Records and the London label Ism Records. The group enjoyed critical success particularly across Europe, with Giles Peterson declaring himself a fan^[6]. In 2017 Parallel Dance Ensemble soundtracked the Vogue x Armani online campaign for their pop-up cosmetic shop in Soho New York, the ad^[7] starred actress Laura Herrier.

After Coco Solid received the APRA Professional Development Award for song-writing ^[8] she completed a ten date tour to Mexico, New York, Berlin, Cologne, Lisbon, Porto and Tokyo in March/April 2009. In 2011 she released her mixtape Venus to Neptunes, a Neptunes inspired mixtape with Portuguese girl rap duo AMOR. In 2015 she was a featured artist alongside Violet, Nightwave, Mamacita and LCD Soundsystem’s Nancy Whang, on the all-woman cover of the Underground Resistance techno classic 'Transition' released on International Womens Day. As well as critical acclaim and approval from Jeff Mills himself^[9], the track went on to inspire Donatella Versace to create her 2016 feminist Versace collection 'Make It Happen'^[10].

After releasing a limited edition pink vinyl 'Grafitti Girls For Life' through the Sydney press the Vinyl Factory^[11], Solid released her cult 2011 mixtape "Pacific Rims" on cassette^[12]. From 2011-2017 Coco Solid released a series of singles with long-time producer Tim 'Jizmatron' Checkley, Lorenz Rhode (with remix from Jimmy Edgar), Tim Paris, Grandmaster Caz, Shes So Rad, Disasteradio and Unitone Hifi.

Coco Solid often combines music with her activism, founding the intersectional club night and online label Kuini Qontrol in 2015. In 2016 she also founded Equalise My Vocals, an online interview series, 2-day panel event and music showcase in Auckland confronting gender and racial equality issues in New Zealand music^[13].

In the 2010's Coco Solid cofounded the punk/noize group Badd Energy. They were signed to noted Dunedin label Flying Nun Records, releasing records Tropic of Scorpio in 2010 and Underwater Pyramids in 2013.

In 2018 Coco Solid released her mixtape 'COKES' available for free download on Waitangi Day as an expression of her Maori identity living under a British colonial government^[14]. Coco Solid also became a founding member of 9-piece experimental rap group Fanau Spa.

In 2018 Coco Solid was also part of the all-woman APRA Songhub sessions, a writing camp for female identifying musicians. Here Coco Solid wrote and recorded music with Purple Rain sound engineer Susan Rogers and Ebonie Smith among others.

Discography

References