Hesta Prynn

In the same manner that Andy Warhol and The RZA artistically tore up the Big Apple, Hesta Prynn is a maverick in the classic “New York” sense of the word. Walking the line between exquisitely pretty and totally hardcore, the former Northern State MC remains an artist with a chic sense of style and a visionary take on all things outside the norm.

This is the girl who Questlove called “his melody”, who hit Scores late night with Cypress Hill and learned to order fast food on the road from Pete Rock. Riding the thin line between indie elegance and gutter hip hop attitude, downtown rock-chic designer Daryl K made Hesta Prynn the face of a collection and she walked the runway in Fashion Week 2011. At the center of all of this is, of course, the music.

As a DJ and longtime lover of vinyl, Hesta Prynn self-released two 7”s including a cover of “Pepper” by the Butthole Surfers which features Clown from Slipknot on drums. In Feb 2011 UK record label Too Pure/Beggars Banquet released “Turn It Gold” on limited edition 7”. The pressing sold out in the pre-sale. Of her sonic mixology she says “I’m a child of the ’90s. I take all of these different sounds, influences and genres and come up with something cohesive and tangible. I love hip-hop. I love pop music. I love the challenge of figuring out what that last dude at the bar needs to hear to get him on the floor and I love getting him there.”

As a perfomer, Hesta Prynn’s sound has already extended far beyond those well-trodden NYC streets at shows internationally with everyone from Jay-Z and 30 Seconds to Mars to Tegan and Sara and Kelis. She’s collaborated with Tim Harrington from Les Savy Fav, covered Neon Indian and remixed Josh Ritter. The list of DJs and musicians who’ve remixed her music is lengthy and awesome. Her stop-motion video for “Can We Go Wrong” is everywhere from MTV’s “The Seven”, to tech-art blog Boing Boing to Teen Vogue, and her envelope-pushing video for Turn It Gold is causing a stir across Europe.