Vayda Releases ‘Haunting You’ With Niontay, Her First on Lex Records

Vayda’s run of collaborations has been steady enough that a solo billing now counts as a slight shift. ‘Haunting You’, her new single, brings in Brooklyn rapper Niontay, and it doubles as her first release on Lex Records, a label that has spent years collecting rap that sits slightly outside the usual circuits.

Produced by Tony Seltzer and Laron, the track opens cold and sparse before Vayda’s vocal settles in over compressed bass and melodic keys. It runs just past two minutes, which is enough. The two rappers trade verses rather than share space, and the result stays low-lit and mobile instead of resolving into anything fixed.

The pairing makes sense on paper and holds up in practice. Vayda has spent the past year building a catalogue through other people’s songs: ‘Solitude’ with Chenayder, ‘Wanna B’ with ATTNWHORE and Mercury, ‘Big Difference’ with Anysia Kim, ‘On My Grind’ with Dreamer Isioma, alongside the standalones ‘Boy Drugs’ and ‘Bangles’. Niontay arrives from a parallel corner of experimental rap, which is likely why the exchange sounds less like a guest spot than a conversation.

The accompanying video, directed by RAINASFUNERA, places Vayda at a candlelit table set with more ceremony than the song’s runtime really asks for. That contrast is the point. The track is brief and unsettled; the image is patient and ornate.