“Tits on the Moon” — Dessa’s Newest Punchy, Witty, and a Little Absurd Collection

“It takes your body 20 minutes after you’ve stopped eating to know if this was a date or just a friend hang”

photo courtesy of raintaxi.

You probably know her, or will know her, as the lyricist who writes those heartbreaking and introspective bars, bars that she spits with the rapid, pelting zing of a military assault rifle, or croons with the melancholy of a box of kittens abandoned in the dead of winter. You probably know her, or will know her, as Dessa, Minneapolis-born, -raised, and -based rapper and writer (and podcaster, because one has to cover as many fields as possible in this day and age).

In her many works, one would find many themes and narratives explored and lamented over, such as heartbreak and unhealthy relationships (“Mineshaft II”), the terrifying numbness of drugs post-operation (“Annabelle”), an atheist playing creationist (“Poor Atlas”, which kind of sounds like a sea shanty), and, the most unfortunate and cruel of all, caring for your monster (“The Lamb”). If I had the time and you the attention span, I could spend paragraphs upon paragraphs heaping praise on this writer, discussing how her works are Gothic. Not Tumblr mall gothic with Sharpie-black hair dye, but Gothic: haunting but awe-inspiring, mournful, wondering, with calls to religion and its influence on the human condition (one definitely feels that in her song, The Beekeeper).

…I just might write another article explaining in great, combed-through details why you should be listening to this artist if you aren’t already. But that would be for another time.

Not all of her works are lamentation and hurt; with her sharp pen, Dessa carves out little nuggets of zany, fun gold, using her quick wit for clever and absurd (if still a little sad) jokes. And one of those little nuggets of gold is “Tits on the Moon”, a collection released on October of 2022 that feature poems that she reads onstage while the crew handle whatever equipment emergencies occur. This collection is like listening to “Shrimp”, another Dessa song, for 22 pages; this collection is Dessa at her most relaxed and laid-back; sort of like Beyonce, Dessa is at that point in her career and life in which she can do whatever she wants in her creative endeavors, and just have fun and be silly with it. A very let down your hair and dance in your socks vibe in this short chapbook. And despite the book being an exercise in how to turn common sayings into the weirdest phrases ever, this book doesn’t lack her propensity for intellectually-stimulating self-reflection.

Readers see that familiar tendency for self-reflection in “The Wasp” and “How to Stage Dive”, in which, respectively, a wasp slips into Dessa’s apartment, watching her cook for Man and falling back into the same unhealthy dating patterns, and in which Dessa recounts her years of performing on stage and the lessons she’s learned throughout her music career (like taking money and expensive equipment inside for every show, because your car will get broken into). It’s a sort of breath of fresh air many of us look for especially as we recover from the impact of COVID-19 (yes, many of us are still reeling from that wild year, and that’s if we’re lucky to not have lost anyone) and the attempt of MAGA takeover.

“Tits On the Moon” is a golden (pressed) example of the literary and lyrical creative genius that Minneapolis births and fosters.

You can purchase this book on the Doomtree store or Raintaxi. Find more of Dessa’s work at dessawander.com