Category Archives: On the Radar

NEW VIDEO – Worth Whyle “High Grade” Ft. Young Roach

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Worth Whyle High Grade featuring Young Roach Directed by ANTUKS official video!
@worthwhyle
@antuksmovement
@jordanbeckham
@jeffreyhilty
@iloveyoungroach

www.antuks.com
www.jordanbeckham.com

Styling on Blonde model by MJ Whalen
Fire dancer and Contortionist Jordanne Weidner @Lady_Vader

Meter Room artwork by John Ross, Brad Bianchi, Devin Jackson.
Beat produced by Frankie O. Solovely

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artistjo…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bianchib…
http://www.flickr.com/photos/devinjac…
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Me…

On The Radar: Justus Clarke

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

Justus Clarke

2011 has been a great year for R&B. With exceptional genre-progressing mixtapes like The Weeknd’s House of Balloons and Frank Ocean’s Nostalgia, ultra., we’ve heard some of the best music from hip hop’s closest relation for a minute now. Now we have another tape to add to the collection as Justus Clarke delivers Livin’ It, an R&B record so mature and so well crafted you’d never guess this kid is only 16.

The smooth crooning of Justus Clarke bubbles for a minute on the intro before exploding into “Lovely Lady” as he channels Stevie Wonder to discuss the beauty of a female. As advertised on the disc, he mixed and mastered this whole project along with writing and producing everything, so when you hear how perfectly sequenced and properly mastered this album is, it only adds to the level of talent this kid has. The title track takes it more upbeat even on a down tempo track as Justus provides solid harmonies to the synth and drum heavy track, and as the pianos come in on the second verse we get even more evidence of an established artist who clearly knows exactly what he’s doing on every track.

For “Coffee” there’s definitely a Prince influence as Justus gives us an upbeat track that’s so easy to dance to and just so damn hype, and the metaphor that he carries on throughout the song is original too, proving that he can not only make great music, but he also has fresh ideas that make this album even more unique. “Beat You To It” continues the upswing on this disc as the 80s vibe truly shines on this gem, with a dope breakdown that again forces you to get up and dance.

A track like “Stay” has every element of an early 90s R&B track, something like you’d hear from Jodeci, while at the same time it incorporates elements of old R&B with its hook and breakdown verses. While some artists clearly are influenced by one period or one sound, Justus Clarke incorporates absolutely every style of R&B into this album and that is another reason why it’s so unique, every song is different yet they all flow together so perfectly.

If you’ve been enjoying the refreshing sounds R&B has been bringing this year then you absolutely need to check out Livin’ It by Justus Clarke. With songs that will make you sway back and forth as well as get right up and dance, he does it all on this album, literally since he handles every aspect of the project from writing and producing to mixing and mastering, all while only 16 years old. The potential this kid has is limitless and if this is his debut then I can only imagine the greatness that will be coming later. Roll down the windows and ride out to this beautiful project, because with this in your deck you’ll truly be Livin’ It.

Tracks That Seal The Deal: The entire Livin’ It album, but especially “Livin’ It”, “Coffee” and “Beat You To It”, “Stay”

Where I Discovered Him: RPHH’s very own K-Mo gets all the credit here!

Livin It | DOWNLOAD

 

Twitter: @JustusClarke

http://justusclarke.bandcamp.com/


On The Radar *Update*

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Over the past few months On The Radar has been looking at up and coming artists who deserve more shine than they’re currently getting. Some of these artists have gone on to receive bigger attention while others are continuing to bubble in their own circuits. As time has gone by it only seemed appropriate to follow up with some of these artists to see what they’ve been up to, what you may have missed from them and what they got coming next. This month will focus on three artists we covered previously to see where they are at now and what you should be checking for from them.


Troy Ave –

Troy Ave has been quite busy since we covered him back in November. Following up his incredible Bricks In My Backpack mixtape with a collection of freestyles and some new joints, KFC: Kilos For Cheap was only more proof that Harry Powder brings that true-to-life hustler music. He bodied industry tracks like “No Hands”, “Black and Yellow” and “Start It Up” while also releasing some gems like “Whole Lotta Base” and by far the best remix of “Hustle Hard”. Next up is the highly anticipated Bricks In My Backpack 2: Powder 2 The People which will feature more of that straight up real rap that we’re used to from the most honest rapper out right now. Check for the new mixtape dropping this month and check out the many videos he’s done for various songs including the Key Mix of “Hustle Hard” and the catchy “Do It Like I Do It”. www.troyave.com www.youtube.com/troyavebsb

 

Preemo –

Preemo has been hard at work dropping project after project and his most recent has caught him a major buzz across the nation as The Magic Bullet is an eclectic group of songs with a few more features than his debut Concrete Dreams but still packs an enormous punch. He includes songs dedicated to the so-called fans of hip hop who don’t purchase albums as well as a personal letter to Ice Cube with whom he spent studio time back in 2006. This album showcases his maturity as he is growing with the buzz and continuing to drop quality material while expanding his fan base across the country, converting more and more people to his incredibly raw, organic hip hop style along the way. http://reverbnation.com/preemo www.twitter.com/preemomusic

 

Guerrilla Alliance –

When we focused on Guerrilla Alliance in January they were readying a monster collaboration with Canibus, and now this month that track will be released and trust after you hear these 80+ bars from ‘Bis you will think you time warped back to 1997, but that’s not all that Guerrilla Alliance has been up to. Vega X has been competing in the Assault and Battling/Grind Time circuit out West as well as working with Ed O.G. to start a Grind Time New England league. His EP The Witch Hammer is set to be released soon and it’s by far his darkest work yet. With the follow-up to Guerrilla Warfare set for this summer, Guerrilla Alliance has been plenty busy making a slew of moves and connections in the industry as well as debuting the official website for their label, Planet X Records – www.planetxrecordsllc.com www.twitter.com/vxceoofpxr


On The Radar: Aziz

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

Aziz

Aziz, a young MC from New Hampshire (no really) does an amazing job at bridging the gap between nerd rap and true lyricism. Two parts Kidz In The Hall and one part rapper’s rapper, this talented artist creates music that is frat-party ready but also contains the importance of social messages and intelligent rhymes on top of unique and diverse production. This ain’t no gun clap rap, but unlike your typical college dorm rap Aziz blends his witty bars and language flips with some true knowledge that anyone whether on the block working or in the CEO office can relate to. His ability to flip words as well as tell stories forces the listener to really pay attention to his words, and his flow and voice make it easy to pay attention as he glides across tracks with confidence and ease.

Making his name around the hip hop circuits by opening for Snoop Dogg, Fabolous, Stalley, Big K.R.I.T. and Pittsburgh’s own Mac Miller, Aziz recently dropped off Leave Me Aziz, a mixtape filled with narratives, boasts and brags, and just straight up rapping. There’s a certain playfulness to the album, again drawing comparisons to Kidz In The Hall. It’s very lighthearted but with many serious tones. While the funky “Wild Flow” is an upbeat treat of raw lyricism, “Nightmares-Inception” takes you deep in Aziz’s mind as he tries to deal with the dreams that are taking over his brain. “Deaded” is a somewhat cheerful look at an often sore subject while “That’s Life” tackles real life situations with a deepness that makes you care about the characters.  For every style of hip hop combined with a slew of different flows and more brilliant lines than you could ever remember to quote, check “Power In Attention”, where Aziz goes in for 5 minutes just slaughtering the extremely welcoming beat. This is easily one of the highlights in this young rapper’s career.

One of Aziz’s greatest strengths is his ability to make powerful songs, from the “Hotel California” influenced “Just Can’t Kill The Beast” to the high-in-the-clouds “Praying For Rain”, the latter being a standout track as it just demands you sway back and forth while singing along. It takes a special ability to be as gripping as Aziz is, but this is also the same kid who, when the music wasn’t working at a show, did his entire set acapella, and kept the audience’s attention the entire time. That’s talent right there.

Up next for this young spitta is Daydreams of a Spaceshot which is shaping up to be one of the better tapes to drop this year. With each move Aziz proves to only be growing and developing, constantly striving to continue to get better. As he’s already proved himself ready to take on the hip hop world, Aziz is confident and comfortable in who he is and what he brings to the table, and combined with his raw talent as well as hard work and dedication there’s no doubt he’s deserving of being one of the more prominent voices of this young generation of MCs.

 

WHERE I DISCOVERED HIM: @ApresMoisLeLuge, and also I went to high school with his brother.

Tracks That Sealed the Deal: Power In Attention, Wild Flow, Praying For Rain, Middleman, Why Wait

http://www.azizmusic.com

Follow @LeaveMeAziz


On The Radar: True Lies

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

True Lies

Hailing from Plainfield, New Jersey, True Lies is an MC who brings a high dose of lyricism to the game along with a truthfulness (check the name) that is backed with passion and consciousness. Not to be confused with a “conscious” rapper, True Lies spits words that really make you reflect, rewind, and listen to again as his wordplay and authenticity are two of his best qualities. On The Field Trip he delivers a plate full of thoughts, on everything from women to hip hop, from his city to the world itself. His verses are both gripping as well as just straight up dope, with his ability to flow in all types of different ways as well as twist and tie in various different metaphors and scenery, you feel his words, and that is what sets him apart from other up and comers in the game right now.

Although the majority of The Field Trip takes place over other rappers’ beats, what’s immediately noticeable is the quality of the beat selection. Every MC has freestyled over someone else’s shit, but it’s whether or not they pick a good beat that matters, and even more importantly if they are able to rock that beat or if it just makes the listener yearn to hear the original artist. True Lies not only selects production which perfectly complements his style, but he also goes in on every track, as if he knows he can’t slack on already legendary songs.

Right from the intro True Lies starts off by showcasing both an orthodox flow as well as his ability to spit fast, this diversity is part of what sets him apart from other rappers on the come up. Not every rapper can do it all, but True Lies already shows that he has a wide variety of abilities on the mic. Both “The If City” and “Plainfield State of Mind” are a brilliant introduction to his city over the classic Jay Electronica and Nas joints, with the former being a concept joint asking “what if” in various situations, showing how fate can sometimes take things in different directions. His rhymes over “Say It” find True Lies absolutely beasting the “Say You Will” Kanye joint with lines like “I’m the difference between a black cat and a panther, a hit and an anthem, Clarett and Barry Sanders”.

The best joint on the tape is also the most vulnerable as “Made For Me” tells a heartbreaking love story complete with an amazing hook from Shon Pace. But don’t let the sensitive side fool you as True Lies revisits a classic to give you his “Dreams” of “crushing a Plainfield chick”. “Story Be Told” provides three different well told narratives and True crushes the “Daytona 500” beat on some straight up raw rap shit. The other highlight is “Nightmares” in which True Lies goes off for 5 minutes just emptying out everything in his mind; it’s brutal honesty on caliber with what you might expect from a Joe Budden Mood Muzik tape. And the sample alone on “Love Goes” makes this one of the most brilliant songs on the whole tape.

With True Lies you get an honest MC who is still developing his craft but definitely has the confidence and ability to create quite the lane for himself in hip hop. On The Field Trip you get exactly that, a journey through the mind of True Lies and through his experiences in the world. This is the mixtape of everyman in 2011: questions, observations, thoughts and emotions. His flow is consistent and his bars are solid, and after hearing The Field Trip you’ll definitely be anticipating the next project from this New Jersey rapper.

WHERE I DISCOVERED HIM: Twitter

TRACKS THAT SEAL THE DEAL: “Made For Me”, “Nightmares”, “Dumb Out”, “The If City”

Download The Field Trip

http://www.youtube.com/tieemj6

Follow @TrueLies6

 

On The Radar: Dub Money

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

Dub Money

With a voice comparable to Naledge from Kidz in The Hall, Dub Money has every bit as much talent as the Chicago MC while also possessing the charisma and personality, simply put Dub Money is a rapper’s rapper. Hailing from the “DMV” comprised of D.C., Maryland and Virginia, Dub has a confidence in his bars that puts him in a position to really demand the attention of the listener, as he effortlessly flows over incredible production consisting of a soulful backdrop for him to ride out on. His mixtape A Dollar and a Dream is a solid example of this young artist’s craft and a well-drafted argument for why he deserves some shine in this game.

All over the project Dub Money is diverse in his ability to tackle different avenues from street talk to punchlines to female oriented tracks, as evidenced on “If It Matters”, in which he provides a solid melody to introduce the beautiful voice of guest Miss J. “Hustlers Anthem” is an epic song in which Dub Money spits truth regarding the lifestyle that takes so many lives, but he does it with an emphasis on making it through and being on top with that champagne bottle, something everyone putting in work needs to relax and celebrate with every once in a while. More along those lines is the title track in which Dub Money smoothly rips one of the illest flows across a hype ass beat you can’t help but move to, and continues the theme of working hard to get that paper, this is easily one of the highlights of the young wordsmith’s career. For more hypeness, “Hands Up High” finds Dub spitting that boastful shit over a beautiful soundscape that really does force to raise ya hands up, shit is dope.

As is with any young talent, production and engineering are large factors and Dub Money has all the right supplemental material in place to showcase his bars, he’s not only talented but he can put together a complete mixtape, that’s a positive trait in and of itself. With so many rappers just lumping a bunch of tracks together and calling it a project, Dub Money has clearly put the effort into constructing a record that has tremendous replay value. “Things Can Change” is another brilliant song about the reality of the struggle, with important messages delivered sometimes through clever lines like “got another chance like Michael Vick”, and his ability to switch up flows is the work of an advanced MC. This kid definitely got a bright future.

Dub Money is a complete package MC, with a well refined flow, consistent lyrical abilities, and the overall raw talent that allows a rapper to elevate above the competition. A Dollar and a Dream is an incredibly put together mixtape showcasing the variety of skills Dub Money possesses with an assorted collection of concepts all delivered with confidence and agility. From the classic movie sampled “Paid in Full” through the HBO-show sampled “I Need Dollas” Dub Money delivers nothing but pure rhymes and brilliant wordplay, he’s definitely one of the more mature cats out the younger generation coming up in the game.

How I discovered him: link sent to me on Twitter

Tracks that seal the deal: “Paid In Full”, “Hustlers Anthem”, “Dollar and a Dream”, “Things Can Change”, “Hands Up High”

Download A Dollar and a Dream mixtape here

Twitter – @Dub202

http://mwsociety.bandcamp.com/

On The Radar: PUSH! Montana

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

PUSH! Montana

When it comes to street rap, specifically hustler music, there’s usually either that boastful shit or the reflective, honest music, and when it comes to the latter of those, PUSH! Montana is easily the nicest out right now. Through his words you can feel his stories and the emotion he puts into them, oh and he also has some of the sharpest, most clever bars as well as that Brooklyn swagger and flow which has proven time and time again which borough is the best. PUSH! Montana is a complete package MC and definitely a rapper that real mafuckas can relate to, and that anyone who’s gone through struggle will relate to.

Pouring his life into every line and proving himself as one of the most prolific and substantive MCs in the game, his latest effort, Fresh Dope is amazing from start to finish, something so rare these days. Right from the start the mixtape proves to be epic with “Who I Am” which boasts a beautiful hook over a hype but soulful beat while PUSH! introduces himself and his life with clever bars like “I remember filling out FAFSA, thinking bout the weed I was finna cop after” as well as simple but harsh truths like “no man can say he never sinned”. Elsewhere he notes that “they don’t need no work for a conspiracy charge”, this is real life music. PUSH! has this ability to make you care about his stories from the jump the way you would care about an MC whose career you’ve followed for a decade, just like Nas did on Illmatic. Whether it’s the intense “Income” (“what good is income when the end come?”) or the somber yet informative “FreshDopeBoy” every bar PUSH! spits is filled with heart, every line is a lesson or an observation such as “got a jail record so we can’t find work, so we buy work…”. On “The Next One” he takes a phrase that is so constantly spoken in hip hop, that of the next big MC, and he asks how that rapper is supposed to live in the mean time, “what the fuck I’m supposed to do until the check come”. Songs like this are what set him apart from everyone else in the game as far as concepts and ideas.

Most rappers these days seem more concerned with popping bottles or bragging about how much money they got, but even when PUSH! is spitting those boastful rhymes he manages to do it in a way that lets you know he’s just telling it like it is, you gotta take the bad with the good and PUSH! manages to bring that perfect balance which is what makes his music so relatable, there’s droughts in the streets too and he lets you know that above all else surviving isn’t as easy at some rappers make it seem.

With Fresh Dope you get exactly that, as PUSH! Montana not only grips you with his bars, but spits over music so emotional that you truly feel it. This isn’t just another street rapper spitting cocaine lines, PUSH! Montana is a rapper’s rapper, an MC whose lyrics are powerful as well as clever, this is true artist who is telling his story for the world to hear. Check out Fresh Dope from PUSH! Montana as well as Rebirth of Fresh Vol. 1 with Don Cannon and look out for more from this incredible street scholar.

WHERE I DISCOVERED HIM: @OfficiallyIce and @The_Lion_

TRACKS THAT SEAL THE DEAL: “Who I Am”, “FreshDopeBoy”, “Novacaine”, Pro Gress”, “I’m Alive”

http://www.twitter.com/PUSHMONTANA
http://www.PUSHondemand.com


On The Radar: Guerrilla Alliance

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

Guerrilla Alliance

If you’re tired of that gun talk and player rap from artists you know ain’t living most of what they’re spitting, look no further than the duo of Vega X and Macabean the Rebel, together known as Guerrilla Alliance. These MCs are blessing the rap game with knowledge about the world around you and how it really operates, with poignant and carefully chosen lyrics, the two members of this group deliver some of the most important and honest hip hop with an incredible talent and confidence, and while they aren’t for those who pop bottles, they are for those who read and subscribe to the idea that everything we know may not be everything it appears to be.

Individually, the two members of Guerrilla Alliance couldn’t be more opposite. Mac has a smooth flow, but don’t let that fool you, the bars he spits are venomous, educating listeners on the truths of the world that you won’t find in schoolbooks and wisdom of the streets. Vega X is the perfect contrast, powerfully shouting his verses in a staccato tone that forces you to take in every word and hear the passion and truth in his bars. Taking the term “originality” to its limits, Guerrilla Alliance’s debut album Guerrilla Warfare tackles a variety of topics including history lessons like on “Inglorious Basterds”, the assassination of Malcolm X on “Audubon Ballroom”, the end of the world in 2012, and straight up knowledge of self. The focus that goes into their songs is part of what makes this group so incredible, on the epic “Systematic Genocide” the three verses are played out as three different sides of the same story, first from the American soldier, then the Taliban soldier, and the third, I’ll let you find out for yourself.

Guerrilla Alliance has also worked closely with the artists who appear on their album, from Wu-affiliates Shabazz The Disciple, Solomon Childs and Warcloud a.k.a. Holocaust to former Terror Squad member Armageddon. Upcoming projects include appearances from Chief Kamachi and a ridiculous verse from Canibus. This isn’t a group that’s just rapping like every other MC sitting in their basement on a computer, or paying for throwaways from former legends, this is a group that’s really putting in the work and has developed their own style and sound which sets them apart and allows them to constantly build and add on, which is exactly what hip hop is all about.

Further cementing Guerrilla Alliance’s place in hip hop is the incorporation of their record label, Planet X Records, owned and operated by group member Vega X who has brought in a slew of talented artists who also rap at an elevated level of consciousness for the subject matter they discuss. Instead of taking the traditional route of looking for a deal, Planet X and Guerrilla Alliance have created their own distribution through their own label, allowing them to continue to add talent as well as promote their own projects, including the recent Dimension X: 2012 mixtape featuring all the Planet X Records “Predators”, Vega X’s upcoming EP The Witch Hammer, Macabean’s upcoming solo album F.E.M.A. and the next Guerrilla Alliance album Empire of Fear. For that true hardcore rap with more knowledge than you get in a college history course, check out Guerrilla Alliance, you’ll learn about the past, present and the future, all with the backing of solid production and on point lyricism from two amazing artists ready to take over the underground hip hop scene.

Where I discovered them: seeing Vega X start in high school and build to this point

Tracks that seal the deal: “Guerrilla Warfare”, “Sky Erasers”, “The Prophecy”, “”The Hidden Fortress”, “Wrath of Kings”

Buy Guerrilla Warfare on iTunes

www.cdbaby.com/guerrillaalliance

www.twitter.com/guerillalliance

www.myspace.com/guerrillaalliance


On The Radar: Preemo

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

Preemo

Houston is most often associated with someone who many would put in their top 5 all time, Scarface. Outside of Face there hasn’t been too many artists that have really come out of Texas to put that star on the map like it should be, enter Preemo.

Where as many associate the south with trap music and zero substance, Preemo brings that pure, unadulterated hip hop that is helping to breathe life into a culture many have considered dead for a while. His album Concrete Dreams dropped this year and has made it to many peoples’ lists of sleeper albums, as it definitely deserves a lot more shine due to the authenticity and incredible production that accompanies it. Make no mistake, this is not just another rapper trying to bring back the 90s, this is an artist who truly understands the history of hip hop and brings his knowledge along with amazing talent to create one of the most complete and well sequenced albums to drop in a long time.

Along with Concrete Dreams, Preemo has delivered Flight 713 as well as Strange Brew, two more mixtapes which further cement this young MC’s place in the elite rookie class. The highlight of his catalogue so far has definitely been his debut album Concrete Dreams which from the instant the first beat drops it’s clear that this kid embodies hip hop, with some of the most boom bap soulful production to ever come out of 2010. The purists will definitely get their fix with this album as the true school sound is all over this project, complete with lyrics that are actually about something, as opposed to just bragging and boasting about some bullshit, so much so that if you aren’t paying attention you’ll miss a lot of jewels.

Preemo also is able to switch flows on command and does so with such ease as his diverseness only adds to his ability to make straight up good music. And just when you think you’ve pegged him as this type of rapper or that type of rapper, he’ll switch it on you, and bring a whole new style, without forcing it or seeming like he’s trying to do too much. He makes young music for them youthful cats still trying to come up, but he also has the ability to make grown man shit, and for that his well-roundedness is part of what makes his debut such a complete project.

On Flight 713 he attacks industry beats with a ferociousness that only furthers his diverseness of styles and ability to take control of the mic and drop gems all over the place. He doesn’t just rap over a beat, he creates a flow that works independently of the production but still glides perfectly right alongside it.

Political rap, bitch tracks, concept joints, storytelling, he got it all. Preemo is one of the most complete young artists in the game right now, and for those who keep looking for that MC who reminds them of their favorites from the past but who isn’t just trying to recreate what’s already been done, Preemo has exactly what you’re looking for. Originality with a sense of history is what you get with Preemo, and there’s nothing more a true hip hop fan could ask for.

Where I discovered him – http://therapup.net/2010/08/album-of-the-week-concrete-dreams.html

Tracks that sealed the deal – “The Daydream”, “New Pistol”, “The Busstop”, “In The Land of Currency”, “Like I”

Twitter – @youngpreemo
http://www.reverbnation.com/preemo
http://www.myspace.com/preemo
Purchase Concrete Dreams on iTunes


On The Radar: Troy Ave

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Note: On The Radar is a monthly series that puts the spotlight on up and coming talent. I’m constantly discovering new artists and some that I find really stand out from the rest. This column is to highlight those artists who are the best out there right now in their style of hip hop and because of that I feel they deserve to be heard on a larger scale.

Troy Ave

Straight out of Brooklyn comes Troy Ave, an MC who has a strong co-sign from Fabolous and the hottest mixtape on the streets right now, Bricks In My Backpack. This is straight up gettin’ money music. It’s the type of shit that motivates you to cook up and then get on the corner and start working, and when it comes to that type of hip hop, there is no one in the game right now that is as on point as Harry Powder (the alias he uses throughout the mixtape, for obvious reasons).

Simply put, this kid is hungry and is bringing some seriously quality material to the table, as this is one of the few mixtapes to drop in a while where there is not one bad track, it plays perfectly straight through as Troy Ave twists and weaves tales of a lifestyle many people only see in movies or hear about in their favorite rapper’s usually-bullshit bars. Make no mistake, this mafucka knows what he’s talking about, and he’s not just giving you the typical money- bitches-cars shit that you hear in every other coke rapper’s lines. With Bricks In My Backpack you get not just the lavishness, but the struggle, with lines like “fuck ‘em let ‘em hate on me, I’m too busy worried bout if there’s a fuckin’ FBI agent with a case on me”. While most rappers wanna just brag about how much money they got, Troy Ave lets you know that the game ain’t for everyone, and that when you’re in it, you got bigger problems than just people talking shit.

This kid has some serious potential to become one of the elite household names in his style of rap and his diversity makes it obvious why Fabolous decided to put him on (pause). Aside from words of wisdom from the kitchen, Troy Ave also can tell a damn good story (“The Gamble”) as well as drop some clever punchlines like “call me Troy Tetris I’m playing with the blocks”. And when it comes to bitch tracks, he doesn’t turn bitch like a lot of rappers, he calls out the women who lie about where they been and what they been doing (“Tales From The Lieside”). He also does something rarely accomplished in hip hop, taking another artist’s beat and actually improving on the track, as “Hustle and Flow” proves. The J. Cole joint is hot, but this Troy Ave joint makes me even forget that J. Cole is the owner of the initial track. Does he have the ability to make a hot single? Look no further than “Get It On The Corner”, a hype-ass joint with a hook you won’t be able to stop chanting, with a powerhouse beat and two solid verses that are straight up fire.

Now I’ll be the first to admit, his music isn’t for everyone. You gotta have a certain mentality and appreciation of this type of hip hop to fuck with this cat. But if you got that hustle in you, then this “motion picture shit” is exactly what you’re looking for. When it comes to cocaine rap, all that other shit is about 75% baking soda, but Troy Ave’s shit is right off the boat, straight from the source, and has every ounce of truth instead of just boasting about some shit that he watched in Scarface. Go download Bricks In My Backpack and look out for more from Troy Ave as he rises to power in New York.

WHERE I DISCOVERED HIM – @OfficiallyIce and 2dopeboyz.com

TRACKS THAT SEAL THE DEAL – the whole damn Bricks In My Backpack mixtape, for real. “Get It On The Corner”, “Martin Lawrence”, “Bricks In My Backpack” (Intro), “Ready Rock”

Follow @TroyAve

www.troyave.com