KHAKIKID
Meet the Irish-Libyan rapper who’s responsible for some of the most original sounds coming out of Dublin
Words
MIRIAM BOUTEBA
Photography
PAULA TROJNER
“Any time that someone buys a ticket or listens to a song – that’s getting your flowers right there,” says Abdu Huss, more commonly known as KhakiKid, as he reflects on the buzz he gets from his music and fans. “It’s not about winning awards, it’s about growing your career and your fanbase.” The emerging Irish-Libyan artist is talking to us from his bedroom on the Crumlin estate in Dublin, which is the same place where he was introduced to rap music by his brother and started producing tracks as a teenager. During our conversation he’s bouncy, sweet and funny – all qualities that could describe his mellow hip hop sound too. Tracks will skip from being melodic to raucous and are peppered with lyrics that run from hilarious to tender. It’s this natural energy and clever word play that’s seen KhakiKid’s star rise since releasing his debut EP ‘Elevator Music’ in 2022. Last year’s ‘sand bebé’ EP was well-aired at his Pitchfork festival dates across Europe. He's been selected for Spotfy’s Radar programme and his latest single ‘Bend’ became track of the week on BBC Radio 1’s Future Artists show.
All of these wins are the result of KhakiKid consistently putting in the work, from taking singing lessons and learning to play the guitar and keyboard, to broadening his musical palette. “When I started out, I had only listened to rap music. I thought you just got beats and then dropped the lyrics over the top. But over the years I’ve met a lot of musicians and developed an ear for the production process. I also love writing melodically now rather than just rapping and am becoming a more well-rounded artist.”
His habit for listening widely, specifically to North African music from the likes of Algerian icon Zohra and Egyptian rising star Nour, has helped him to connect to his heritage in a way that was closed off for most of his life. “Libyan culture wasn't prevalent at all when I was growing up because my dad wasn't around after I was six. I didn't like being Arab, so I didn't look into it,” he says. “But over the last three or four years I’ve thought it’s actually sick as hell being Arab, North African and Berber – and it’s music that’s helped me to become proud. I'll take North African music to my mates who are real music nerds and they’ll think it’s so class. Then I'll be at a party and they'll start playing the song and it’ll spread like that.”
“It’s actually sick as hell being Arab, North African and Berber”
KhakiKid is now able to inspire the new generation of Irish-Arab kids who often message him to say thank you for making them feel confident about their identity. “It’s remarkable how many people have been in touch. A few lads have had the exact same childhood as me, where they're mixed but the dad's not in the picture but these days, they feel good about themselves. For me, it’s been a progression. At some point I just told people I was from North Africa and then I was like, why aren't I just saying Libyan? Adding the Libyan flag to my bio is something I would have never done a few years ago.” He’s using his charm on street level too by weaving Arabic into everyday speech – in the same way he does on track, ‘Cozy’. “I always greet people with ‘as-salamu alaykum’. During covid, I was skating a lot, so would say it every day at the skatepark and after a while all the other Irish guys started to say it to each other. I was like, mission complete!”
The artist is currently bringing his energetic spirit and original sound into the studio by collaborating with different musicians, and across the sea in London – where, not only is the Arab creative scene buzzing but the appetite for Irish alt-rap (in part fuelled by Kneecap’s success) is growing too. So rest assured, big plans are afoot for 2025. “I want to put out a full album at the start of the year. I've been writing a lot in the last few months, experimenting with my voice and I have enough songs already. I used to think albums had to be conceptual but then I heard Dominic Fike talking about ‘Sunburn’ and now I know it can just be a series of songs that reflect how I was feeling for that period of time. It’ll automatically mean something because it’s like a time stamp in history.”
Visit KHAKIKID
Words MIRIAM BOUTEBA
Photography PAULA TROJNER
