![Iggy Azalea Iggy Azalea](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/iggy-azalea1.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
Iggy Azalea knows exactly what you think about her, so as she kicks off her 2014 victory lap — marked by next week’s The New Classic reissue, Reclassified — she’s making sure to gloat. The Australian rapper dedicates new song “Heavy Crown” to “everyone who said I’d never make it.” She lets a hook from “Burn” siren Ellie Goulding warn listeners that the emcee is sticking to her guns, no matter how polarizing: “You can’t always please the crowd / but I’m still not bowing down… bitch, I got it now.”
“Heavy Crown” won’t change the minds of anyone who’s already written off the rapper, but Iggy’s double-time rap over the militaristic march seems more at ease than the occasionally clunky verses on early singles. (See her hate-it-or-love-it verse on “Work.”) Iggy critics have docked points for the way her rapping style can sound forced and over-studied, but “Heavy Crown” suggests she’s discovering how to not to be so stiff. In the year that saw “Fancy” stay No. 1 for seven weeks, she’s certainly earned the right to kick back and relax.
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Biden Drops Out of Presidential Race , Endorses Harris to Replace Him
- Why Biden Dropped Out
- The Chaos and Commotion of the RNC in Photos
- Why We All Have a Stake in Twisters’ Success
- 8 Eating Habits That Actually Improve Your Sleep
- Stop Feeling Bad About Sweating
- Welcome to the Noah Lyles Olympics
- Get Our Paris Olympics Newsletter in Your Inbox
Write to Nolan Feeney at nolan.feeney@time.com