Listen again, and you might catch the significance of that line about the rent. “Runnitup” is less “Ante Up” or “Gimme the Loot” and more structural critique (not that there’s anything wrong with those felonious classics). In a press statement, Zora explains that she and Thornton wrote the song in response to the delays they encountered getting their Covid stimulus payments in 2020: “We wanted to make a song about metaphorically running up on somebody who didn’t give us what we were owed,” she writes. “In reality, this song is pretty explicitly about U.S. capitalism and how we need to just overthrow it. I still have hope, at least.”
The other thing you’ll notice about “Runnitup” on second, third, and fourth listens is the production — edgy, spark-casting industrial clangor that should appeal to fans of the late Sophie’s visionary work or Jimmy Edgar’s adventures in left-field sound design. Zora is the sole producer on “Runnitup,” and the rest of Z1 is full of her impressively original approach to making beats. This single marks the arrival of an artist who’s already able to command attention from the first bar to the last. Turn it up and listen closely as you imagine a less oppressive world.
Find a playlist of all of our recent Songs You Need to Know selections on Spotify.
