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Sydney rapper Yibby has shared his second single of 2021, Chess Not Checkers.

The track, released yesterday (March 31), follows on from the release of Cigar in early February, which featured Lord Apex. Chess Not Checkers features a verse from Arno Faraji, marking his first new music of the year.

Listen to the track below:

In a press statement, Yibby explained that the songs title stems from a saying that went around in his circle of friends.

[It] mean[s] that you have to think long-term or strategically about things, he said. When someone would make a smart move, we would say that.

The saying came to mind, Yibby continues, when he was shown a new instrumental in the studio. The beat was a co-production between Kid Fiction and Clockwork Odyssey.

When I heard the beat, I knew it reminded me of that feeling, he said. It was high energy and natural but still calculated.

Farajis involvement came later in the piece, after he and Yibby met in Sydney while the former was on a national tour. When I listened to the demo back I knew hed be right for it, he said. His verses have crazy bounce.

Chess Not Checkers and Cigar follow on from the two singles Yibby released in 2020, No Sweat in April, and Ballin in November, which featured Angelo The Poet.

Faraji, meanwhile, was last seen as a featured artist on Kwames 2020 EP Please, Get Home Safe. He also released a collaborative single with Two Another, Just A Phase, in July last year.

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Yibby and Arno Faraji team up for new single Chess Not Checkers - NME.com