Queens rapper Anik Khan has enlisted Jay Prince for his new video, “Lingo,” the first of a four-part visual series that highlights stories of the global diaspora.
In the Priya Minhas-directed video, we see Khan take a tongue-in-cheek approach to a spelling bee, which acts twofold: it becomes a nod to his South Asian heritage—according to the New York Times, a majority of Spelling Bee tournament winners are of South Asian descent—and to the fact that English wasn't Khan's first language.
“I’m focused on sharing our stories, our pigment and our realities,” Khan tells Complex. “‘Lingo’ is the first of many that are coming in the next four to six months. I’m excited to show what this next chapter for me looks like.”
Much of Khan's music spotlights the unseen stories of the diaspora—and his own family's struggles in the U.S. “I’mma fuck this Trump shit, I can’t fly through customs but I still fly through custom,” he raps over the Dominique Sanders-produced beat. Khan's story was also recently chronicled in the PBS doc, Street Level, which highlighted his fight for U.S. citizenship.
