Nines opens the vault once again with teenage mixtape ‘Young Nina’

Despite announcing his retirement from rap with 'Quit While You’re Ahead' in September 2024, followed by a final live show at London’s O2 Arena that November, Nines has continued to maintain a presence across the UK rap scene. The Church Road rapper may have stepped away from the usual recording and touring cycle, but his archive has given fans plenty of reasons to keep listening.

Earlier this year, he surprised listeners with 'Lost Tapes', a collection of previously unheard material that brought together recordings from across his career, including some notable collaborations. Now, he is returning to the vault once again with ‘Young Nina’, a project described as “the mixtape before his first official mixtape”.

Recorded when Nines was just 17 years old, the release offers a glimpse into an earlier stage of his journey, long before he established himself as one of the defining voices in UK rap. It gives fans the opportunity to hear material from a formative period in his career, adding another piece to the story behind the artist.

The timing also makes the release particularly interesting. Having drawn a line under his active recording career with 'Quit While You’re Ahead', Nines is now able to revisit and share music that might otherwise have remained unheard. Rather than signalling a return to the industry’s usual release cycle, ‘Young Nina’ feels like another opportunity to open up his archives on his own terms.

For longtime supporters, these releases offer a welcome chance to hear more from an artist whose catalogue has played an important role in shaping the UK rap landscape. While Nines continues to enjoy his retirement from active recording and performing, ‘Young Nina’ is a reminder that there is still plenty of music from his past waiting to be heard.