Backxwash

Backxwash aka Ashanti Mutinta is a Zambian-Canadian rapper & producer based in Montreal, Quebec. She is most noted for her 2020 Polaris Music Prize-winning album God Has Nothing To Do With This Leave Him Out Of It. Her work includes a culmination of themes around the intersection between faith, identity, and queerness. Backxwash's critically acclaimed trilogy—God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It (2020), I Lie Here Buried With My Rings and My Dresses (2021), and His Happiness Shall Come First Even Though We Are Suffering (2022)—has cemented her as a visionary in experimental hip-hop. The trilogy reflects different points in her life and delves into themes of identity, spirituality, and personal struggle, blending haunting beats with unfiltered, introspective lyricism. Backxwash emerges from the shadows of her trilogy with Only Dust Remains (March 28th, 2025). The album takes a new direction that showcases her evolution into a broader and more diverse sonic landscape. The album touches on themes of mourning, reflection, and hope, exploring them with a sincerity and depth that deepen her storytelling, while embracing a more melodic and complex soundscape.