Saint Nick would forgive you for not equating rap and hip hop with Christmas, but there is an underappreciated overlap. Let’s even skip over the fact that Christmas lights are essentially just bling for your house/tree, that Santa’s suit would only otherwise be accepted in a late ’90s rap video, and that the spirit of excess can be heard echoing throughout our seasonal spending. Instead, let’s take a moment or two to appreciate the Maritimes’ predominant emcee’s addition to what may surprise many to learn is a pretty substantial collection of Christmas rapping.
Kurtis Blow is largely credited with starting this odd crossover tradition (“Christmas Rappin’”) and it has encompassed everything from the legendary Run DMC hit, “Christmas in Hollis”, to a far more gang-affiliated Snoop (“Santa Claus Goes Straight To the Ghetto”), hipster rappers like Macklemore (“Christmas Time”) and even DMX releasing a questionable cover of “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” or a Kool-Aid man featuring Lil’ Jon single (“All I Really Want for Christmas”). Enfield’s favourite son, Classified, throws his Santa hat into the ring with today’s release of “The Bells Are Ringing”.
The track opens with the Nova Scotian seemingly briefly bargaining with his children as he gets them ready for bed. The backing beat hits before throwback and smoothly-styled Breagh Isabel (formerly of Port Cities) chorus welcomes us to the not so silent night.
Isabel’s old-fashioned influenced chorus sparks an image of her singing on some forgotten holiday classic in black and white on the TV in contrast to Classified’s more currently curated verses, the bridge between the two being the traditions of this time of year. The track is suitably family-friendly with no harsh language and stays within more cozy Christmas content of referencing familiar carols (“Let It Snow”, “Baby It’s Cold Outside”, “Hallelujah”) and traditions (mistletoes, ugly sweaters, letters to Santa, turkey).
On “The Bells Are Ringing,” Classified manages to give us a warm and fitting view of the season through a hip hop filter that may rope in some of those still stubbornly resisting the holiday soundtracks. A welcome addition from a genre not known to be jolly, it’s everything a fan would expect from a Classified single. He brings his trademark flow, beats and style—just infused with a low-key reflective Christmas cheer.