Ninyo Ausmkiez is a familiar face around some of Chiang Mai’s hippest party places; from Warm Up Cafe to Hip Hop parties around the city, but now his presence has moved up onto centre stage with the release of his first single, Goo Farang, where he raps hard about the common misconceptions people make about him, even after all these years living in his second home, Thailand.
Born in Berlin 32 years ago, Ninyo has spent nearly a third of his life in Thailand, and has a successful career in the movie industry. Through his time here, Ninyo has made friends with a range of locals and national celebrities and has his foot firmly in the hip-hop scene of Thailand, appearing at parties alongside Joey Boy, Fucking Hero, Buddha Bless and many more.
This year however, Ninyo has expanded away from his movie scene and branched out into the music scene for the first time, something that many would say has been a long time coming.
With his debut single Goo Farang, Ninyo raps lyrical about the funny encounters he has around Thailand, while trying to explain that sure, he is a Farang, but that’s not why he likes eating Pad Thai. There are cameo appearances by over 25 local and international artists that Ninyo knows personally, all who totally get into the vibe of the song, and can be seen rapping along with the Goo, Goo, Goo Farang chorus. A chorus that is so catch it could be dangerous if you end up blurting it out in the wrong company! Dressed in his signature style of full Adidas, Ninyo takes to the streets of Chiang Mai with his posse of fans and friends, mixing up Thai, German and English to form a rap that does his cause justice.
“A lot of Thai people ask me, why farngs like to wear Adidas, why do farangs drink Sangsom, why do farangs like Issan girls? And I always have to reply by saying, not all farangs like it, but some do,” says Ninyo when Citylife asked him about what inspired his single Goo Farang. “I always am asked, why I do this and that, but the point is that farangs are not all the same. Don’t these people know the differences between a backpacker and someone who lives here?”
“I want to show that the word ‘farang’ is not something that can describe us all, and it shows that even after ten years in this country, I still feel like a stranger in daily situations like these. I was inspired by a German rap song called Ich Bin Schwarz by rapper SXTN.”
The single, Goo Farang was released in April 22, 2017, and at the time of publishing this article, it has already grabbed over 68,000 views.