Nora Mazu

Nora Mazu is an Austrian rapper who was active during the early years of the country’s hip-hop scene in the mid-1990s. After being exposed to rap music during her school years and after attending a rap concert, Nora Mazu became fascinated by the playfulness of rap lyrics. For her, rap became a great tool to express herself. She first became a part of a rap crew in Vienna called STOIKA at a time when hip-hop was still relatively small in Austria. In 2008, Nora Mazu, who was known as Nora MC at the time helped found an all-female crew called MTS and acronym for Multitasking Sistas. During a time when it was unusual for women to rap, MTS was established a safe space to help women who identify with rap and hip-hop culture to express themselves.

In 2016 she started her solo artist career when she wanted to experiment and develop her own take on the genre. Her yogic lifestyle and her travels to Portugal, Thailand and Latin America highly influenced her artistic vision. Nora Mazu often uses elements like lo-fi beats and reggae to emphasize the positive messages of her rap lyrics.
In her latest album Puls, she  describes her own music as rap between mind movies and journeys into space, with the imagery being largely self-reflective and not being socially critical. The album has a distinct trip-hop style with dreamy vibes and aesthetics and was produced by the German producer FIRNWALD in 2018.

Nora Mazu’s live shows that are titled “Rap Ritual Love Ceremonies” are intimate experiences that transcend normal concert conventions and where she is at eye level with the audience. She developed live sets with a “ritual ceremony” aspect. She encourages her audience to dance their way out of patterns and move freely and tune into their inner feelings.