Sydney/Eora hip-hop artist Madame WU has emerged with the first taste from her upcoming album ‘Cicada Sunlight’ (out 2025)– releasing ‘我是 Madame Wu’ (‘I Am Madame Wu’) today. The Sydney emcee worked with frequent collaborator riverkid, who produced the track and features throughout the LP.
Always one to proudly embrace and represent her experience as a Chinese-Australian through her music,我是 Madame Wu (I am Madame Wu) is the intro song from Madame Wu and riverkid’s upcoming album, ‘Cicada Sunlight’, and features lyrics in both English and Mandarin.
Lyrically, Madame Wu explains that the track “celebrates you as you are” and was “Originally written to cheer up my sister ‘Fuck anyone who doubts you, I’m so proud of you, you tell me what you amount to’ the song is a middle finger to pressure to conform, and is a celebration of family, identity and giving in to the beat.
The song is also about pride, pride to be Chinese Australian, pride to be an aunty and a mum, but the song is also about taking away those roles and answering what my name is and what I do with the same answer, my name, just being me. Qing Sl is my Chinese name that was given to me by my grandfather, it means ‘music’ and ‘missing or wanting someone’.”
The track also features samples from her friends, who provided speaking parts in Mandarin used throughout the track.
“Vocal samples in Mandarin were recorded at my home by my friends Alex Toh and Shelley Guo. My mandarin is imperfect, so it makes me feel even more vulnerable having it on the album, but that’s the experience of a lot of Chinese Australians, and the song is about just having a go and letting loose.”
MADAME WU
Produced by artist/producer riverkid, the track features a textured, dynamic beat that lays the perfect platform for Wu’s verses.
On the origin of the beat, riverkid explains that “This was the result of just some idle messing around on a kalimba I’d had for years, but it turned into a fun beat. Then when Madame Wu sent me back her vocal I was floored by the raw power and attitude she brought to the track. It turned into such a great statement of her artistry and her personality. I really love when she comes out strong in the second verse with ‘f*ck anyone who doubts you!’ that’s the Madame Wu I know and have been proud to work with and call a friend.”
Madame Wu has been making waves in the underground hip hop scene for a little while now, with two full length LPs under her belt (‘Madame Wu’ (2012) & ‘Time Waits For No Woman’ (2016)) and a string of singles over the last few years.
She’s previously collaborated with artists such as Radical Son and Ev Jones, and supported the likes of De La Soul, Thundamentals, Tuka, Pez & L Fresh The Lion in her time. With the rest of ‘Cicada Sunlight’ set to drop later in 2025, Madame Wu has a big 2025 in front of her – with more news to come.
