Agung Mango (Melbourne rap collective Picked Lasts’ finest) released his new single today, titled “The Moth Prefers the Moon”.
He’s also releasing his upcoming debut album on August 1st, IN BELLY WE TRUST, which is set to be an experimental phase for Mango.
“This album is a reflection of a pivotal moment in my life where I learned to trust myself and embrace authenticity’, he shares. “I was going through a lot during that time and music seemed to be the only release that was helping me. It’s a raw expression of my journey in the last year and a bit”.
His last project, the MAN ON THE GO EP in 2022, garnered national acclaim, featuring Genesis Owusu and fellow Picked Last rapper and Melbourne local Mammoth, with fans crying out for another project since. Last year, he opened for Freddie Gibbs, the year before that, Anderson .Paak, and Tame Impala this year.
So far this year, he’s released singles “GUT”, “Fluent”, and “PEMECUTAN NAPOLETANA”, building the anticipation for IN BELLY WE TRUST.
Speaking on the albums creation and new single release, Mango said the project was “created with my brother Violet inside a little warehouse in Brunswick East.”
“It tells the story of a ghost who’s lost the power to inspire fear. While working on it, I wanted to put myself in the ghost’s perspective and whilst dissecting the character it led to unexpected insights I learnt about my own life”, he said. “To break down the title of the song, the moth is a motif for the ghost in which in many cultures, the moth is seen as a spirit conducting at night, attracted to the moon. The moth symbolises rebirth and transformation of the ghost.”
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Throughout the years, Mango has made his attention to detail well-known as Picked Last have become one of Australia’s most prominent hip hop collectives, home to some of the country’s best like the aforementioned Mammoth and Boy Ace.
His debut album is likely going to sway heads, with Mango looking to make a further mark on the Australian rap landscape.
Agung Mango’s “The Moth Prefers the Moon” is out now. IN BELLY WE TRUST is out August 1st.
