Buffalo’s Tr38cho (Tre Ocho) needs just one verse to make waves on his single “Big Twinkie.” Taking influence from legendary lyricist Eyedea, Ocho fits in punchlines and commentary into the minute and a half track, with statements like “I’m from the part of the city they aren’t trying to gentrify.” The instrumental has a grimy 90s NYC feel to it, and the Ghostbusters Twinkie scene leads in and out of the song. Give it a listen below.
California rap duo El Capitán identity is expertly represented in their single “Sun Tzu.” The track’s production has a country twang, built around desert guitar strums. The mental image of a tumbleweed crossing the sand will enter your brain when you hear this song, guaranteed. Abhi the Nomad takes the first verse and rips of a string of tight lines and then Local Foster takes over before a the beat flips and the energy blows. Both Abhi and Foster flow with relaxed, sharp intensity and are prone to quick-witted lines and “researching the cure to the common rapper.” “Sun Tzu’s” video is a cinematic epic and worth the watch regardless of how good the tune is. Press play below.
Buffalo rapper Short Moscato is a proven wordsmith that also comes through with thematic songs and projects on the regular. His latest track “Whisper” discusses his methods of escape from his insecurities and beyond. The voice of John Lennon talks of the transcendental powers of meditation, and Moscato follows him up by delving into his own explorations. He delivers just one titular verse, allowing for Lennon and medasin’s production to frame his messages. Medasin’s light-yet-abrasive outro captures the flux of Moscato’s deliverance, and wraps up a tight track. “Whisper” is the first single off of Moscato’s commercial debut The Colour of Air, due out March 17th.
Rapping by the way of Texas, Berlin, and elsewhere around the world, emcee Infidelix brings a global perspective to his music. His worldwide experience works in his favor when it comes to owning his sound and his message. On his newest single “American Spirit” Infidelix rhymes “I’m not in it for the business I’m in it because I need to get shit off of my chest.” That personal connection is rife in his music, where the passion for the art comes first and foremost. He’s been through the gutter, and turned that adversity into opportunity (“I bought a one-way ticket to the rest of my days.”) With dizzying flows and a classic hip hop beat, Infidelix’ “American Spirit” is an awesome rap performance that has us hyped up for his upcoming project Busk Life. Listen below.
Buffalo’s Mega Powers is the tandem of emcee Ideal and producer Jacebeats. Their name calls to the legendary wrestling duo of Hulk Hogan and the Macho Man Randy Savage and they’ve got the talent to back it up. “Hit the Streets” is an idealist boom bap single with a call to action to take things back to the people. Ideal’s bars promote independent thinking and living in the moment, while Jace’s joyful production features show-stealing vocal samples and horns. The “Hit the Streets” music video continues the throwback vibes as Ideal takes center stage while Jace stunts stoically in the background. “Hit the Streets” is the debut single for the Mega Powers’ much-anticipated upcoming album 0 = 1. Press play below.
Lottery Odds’ single “3:16” has one of the most exciting intros to a rap song of all time. The WWF’s Stone Cold Steve Austin delivers a blistering promo directed towards Chris Jericho, Booker T and Vince McMahon setting up a steel cage match on Monday Night Raw, the crowd is charismatic as hell and SCSA delivers quotable line after quotable line. As the promo dies down, a bombastic beat takes over and Lottery Odds time begins. Channeling his inner Stone Cold, Odds takes a confident delivery into his verse, sounding like he’s at the top of his game. This is just an incredibly fun and enjoyable track. Perfect parts rap and wrestling, and that’s a fusion that’ll never fail. Drink it in below.
Fairview Heights, Illinois’ Nick Menn covers all the bases in being a well-rounded emcee on his single “So Ill.” The wordplay is there in spades, ridiculously so when he’s talking about a chick doing some coke and spins it into “She was fingering up the ‘ye like her name was Amber Rose.” In addition to his skill with words, Menn’s flows are off the charts. He starts off with a straight on flow, but goes into chopper mode on his second verse and acapella to close out the track. It’s in this outro where Menn gets especially serious about his career. “Fuck Netflix and chill, I’d rather talk net worth and build.” With his sphere of approaches, Menn makes “So Ill” a must listen. Give it a play below.
Tri-state rapper Ran Reed teams up with Long Island wrecking ball Bumpy Knuckles to create the blunt, bruising call-out “Pathetic M.C.s.” Ran Reed’s nasty delivery gets its flavor immediately with the opening line “Rappers ain’t rapping no more they straight mumbling, give them a year their career starts crumbling.” Bumpy Knuckles comes in on the second verse, succinctly describing his presence on the track with the line “Even when I’m quiet, my voice starts riots.” Reed also takes on production duties for this track, flipping the soulful opening into a knocking, standout beat. These two deliver intimidating and intense verses that leave their fellow emcees shaking. Listen to “Pathetic M.C.s” below, and peep the project it comes from, Still Commanding Respect.
Cynic the Apache’s silky rhymes prove to be killer on Get the Gringo 2 opener “Ham on Rye.” The Millennium Jazz Music artist has a knack for transitioning seamlessly between lines. One leads right into another, as Cynic recounts the person he’s been and the path he’s on currently. With his personal drive, his parents’ help and assistance from friends he’s able to push out a cut with head-bobber flows and fitting production. Jazzy drums and guesting horns carry a perfect instrumental for Cynic to lay down his verses. “He’s the kind of kid who can beat you in Connect 4 in just three moves.” Press play on “Ham on Rye” below.
“They say the good die young and you know I’m still alive,” raps Flatbush’s Jacob ZL on his single “Worst Days.” Over a smooth beat courtesy of tomcbumps and purpan, Jacob recounts the time he spent with an old love. Discussing both the highs and the lows, “Worst Days'” dichotomy lifts the song from a depressing place into a vivid story. Passion drove ZL’s relationship and it wasn’t a sustainable deal, he claims with the line “How are we supposed to work when the first thought was that this wouldn’t work?” ZL’s crafted a track to vibe to but flexes his storytelling chops at the same time. Give it a listen below.
Seattle’s Lord OLO commands a dark, cultish aesthetic. It’s represented masterfully and creepily in the video for his track “Dirty30.” Much of the video for the rap cut takes place on a Gameboy Color that appears to be projecting a new dimension. OLO makes a filtered appearance in the visuals, showing off his prowess with some clever bars like “No disrespect, your kitty just ain’t worth the litter.” Lord OLO has some DOOM vibes going in his lyricism too, particularly in the way that he talks about his OLO character. It’s like he’s telling a story firsthand about this figure, and it gets you itching to hear the next chapter. Listen to his album with producer Wann Sklobi here, and check out the video for “Dirty30” below.
Miami rapper -ToBy- brings forth an experimental, yet accessible sound for his single “flowers.” The track speaks to ToBy’s feeling of taking part in an up and coming music scene. Demonstrated in the track’s artwork, ToBy comes from a scene that combines conventional rap influences and sounds with different forms of media like anime. “flowers” also teases some lo-fi, emotional sounds that we’ve seen from some Internet rap darlings, particularly out of Florida. ToBy’s at the forefront of a dope rap scene in southern Florida and “flowers” encapsulates both his and that regions sound. Give it a listen below.
Coming from Tallahassee by the way of Germany, Trilllhippy channels his stoner ways into the hazy hip hop track “Sensation.” Trilllhippy is just that, a cool young peacelover, and on “Sensation,” his vibes are rubbing off on a new romantic interest. The chorus is a window into their relationship, “She watch how I inhale it, I light it, she sense my stoner fragrance, she love it.” Youthful, excitable, and experimental, “Sensation” sums up the feeling of new love, new experiences, and living outside of responsibility. It’s a dope track. Listen to “Sensation” below and check out more from Trilllhippy here.
Chicago’s nIgel and his frequent collaborator Neph keep their rhymes black and white on “Gray Music.” The two Chicago rappers drop a couple of verses that evoke melancholy, washed feelings. Producer Weirddough sets this mood with a killer beat featuring haunting moans, some orchestral strings and jazzy drums. The rappers have sharp words but also flash their stoner ways in their lyricism. Much like the color in the title, several attitudes went into making “Gray Music.” Both solemn and incandescent, the track comes ahead of nIgel’s EP The Future Looks Gray with producer Xany, and they’ve produced some dope work in the past. Give it a listen below.
The premise of Israel-American rapper Kosha Dillz’ “No You Can’t” is to remind everyone that he’s reached a status where he doesn’t have to pass out favors. Whether that’s borrowing toilet paper or playing a show for free, that’s not something Kosha will subject himself too. Ripe with self-awareness, “No You Can’t” has the dope distinction of being a really funny track but also goes hard as hell. Dillz raps “Being stupid as hell’s the smartest thing I ever did,” but he’s more than capable of navigating the track’s zany, bloopy beat. After two hard verses, he breaks the song equivalent of the fourth wall, saying “Last verse better than the first two.” It’s little elements like this that make Kosha Dillz a fun, personable artist to listen to. His personality comes with every bar. Give “No You Can’t” a listen below and check out more from Kosha here.