AmuThaMC - Since the Sandbox
Starting out with one of the most talented and down to earth guy's I've ever had the pleasure of speaking to, Amu, as im sure you will know if you've listened to his music before usually gives your brain a work out with his lyricism. This track however feels slightly different, he's made this a little more easy listening to get his point across to the less hardcore listener, this one is all about respect and brotherhood. Granted the format has been tried and tested in the way the video is laid out, with Amu surrounded by his closest friends, this has been seen on some of his past videos but it just goes to show the love he is always surrounded by, saying that, Yissa and Narzzo (Director - D.O.P) make this feel fresh especially with the train and the beginning. Starting over a subtle guitar sound and soft baseline Amu jumps straight to the point, I've known these guys since the sandbox and I've got them, and they have me until the day we drop. There's plenty of clever easy to understand word play, this about guys who have become part of his inner circle later on in life "for my brothers, I'm willing to go the distance, even the ones we've met along the way and had additions, treat 'em like family but I've never been good at maths, so there's no way I'll ever see divisions." and a nice little metaphor using Fetty Wap as an example about not seeing the bigger picture or there's more to see than meets the eye about guys hating on each other or what Amu stands for. The whole moral to this is about how much respect he gives and receives, the hoops or events he will go through for those closest to him even if not blood related they are all treated the same. This track can be looked at as an example of how close bonds can be between groups, I mentioned it in my video and I will again now, I wish I had a connection to a group of friends like this, making sacrifices to push others around you to help them achieve goals. This is a bond friends should strive to achieve.
WOMBAT - LETTER 2 NICKY
From the love and respect of friends, to this amazing dedication to a friend whom is unfortunately no longer with us. Wombat is one of the most underrated underground artists out there, and by out there I don't just mean Australia I mean anywhere. This dedication to his friend took 4 hours to film but a lifetime to write, the unfortunate passing of a friend whom was inspirational to Wombats music career is another knock to Wombats personal life and no doubt wont help the demons he has faced in recent years. Some nice word play is always the norm on a Wombat track and he has always been open with his personal life, I just feel that some lines in this hit a little harder than in the past, especially the line reminiscing about his close knit group of friends and the feeling of just yesterday running from the police to kissing Nicks casket as it gets carried away, this track is raw, its stripped back to the bones and Wombat has bravely exposed his true feelings to the listener throughout. Talk of excessive drinking without a care for himself, drug taking, feeling as high as Elon Musks rockets or that life isn't real comparing it to the Matrix the second verse brings us what was, kicking it with ChillinIT and listening to his inspirations in Kerser, Rates, ABK and Alex Jones. I personally hope that he gets back to the days he mentions of touring, being on stage and being back to his best. This, I hope wont push Wombat back to some dark days, hopefully he knows he has close friends and a loyal fanbase.
Rest in Paradise Nick Bennett.
Spanian - Melvin Manhoef
As much as we all love Spanian on any track he does, Hood Oos, Illchay, Hood Rambo have an easier listening feel compared to his latest in Melvin Manhoef, its not as hardcore lyrically as Chaos 96 but its back on the track of that. From the first words spoken in this Spanian takes no prisoners, literally like a Barbarian, I have self named him the angriest man alive and he hits that target again, lyricism on point as per usual in this, the intelligence used to come up with schemes used is second to none, with a few tongue in cheek bars this is an instant classic. Playing in the first verse with Common's Aquarius word play and Darius King and lines from Scarface, Spanian keeps us hooked with different ways he can offend, bury or destroy other artists that just aren't as good basically. Verse two is just as ridiculous if not more, turning up at your door with a death warrant or the whole word play of sore arms / saw arms, the Hindu bar, the flat earth and bullet bar, this isn't a track for any listener that wants an easy ride, this is a track for a listener that appreciates and can hear what's getting said and what is really meant by it. On the whole this is a production, Khaled Rohaim working hard with Spanian as well in his own ventures and the beat also produced by Keanu Beats, Sid Ballek and Banshee is perfectly made for Spanian, Aaron Bull pulls out a great music video with no rest in movement and close ups. The visuals themselves with Spanian on a chain mirrors lyrics in the track and is reminiscent of the film Unleashed featuring Jet Li about a fighter / killer. Overall this is easily one of my favourite tracks this year.
Day1 - King Of My City
Day1, one of the brightest youngest talents in music right now is back, following with the theme of this week with brotherhood and friendship, this is another switch in his music lately. The last 3 releases including this have all been different which is showing versatility, whether it be in videos or genre. Trap Again, which i think is one of his best releases gave us a different feel, himself and a mic, talking deep. Shisha Chick, more light-hearted is about basically getting a girl and now this, which has some good punchlines and has more of a feeling of friendship and being there for people no matter what. Lines including "bro got locked up, judges order, did a show, paid for his lawyers" goes to show the dedication to those around him. I'm not really sure how to label Day1 in his way of making music, its a mix of everything, he seems to have more of a melodic voice but he brings that with some hard lyrics, lyrics that you wouldn't expect with his voice, such as dealing cos his trap phone wont stop ringing, the fact that past ventures in his life are starting to catch up to him now that he's becoming a household name so he has to stay strapped for protection. This isn't a negative though, I personally think that it shows more versatility, he can make any genre of music he wants, his flow is one of the best around as he seamlessly goes through this track. The video like I mentioned before has changed to his recent releases, this has a more urban feel to it, moving from homes, to streets to booths to live shows. If he thought people thought some type of way before, after his recent releases its just going to stir up the haters even more as he continues to grow, as his fan base gets larger and of course how he makes and spends the money he makes by doing this. The future is very bright for Day1.
Ello. C - DEYSAY REMIX (feat. GMC & Ill.P)
"Never wanted to be famous, I just wanted my respect."
Even though that line comes midway through the first verse, it is the whole tone for this track. Lets start at the beginning, Johnny Narcotics has put together this beat that has a feeling of a sinister tone, the type of sound you would hear in as thriller or horror movie to build intensity, and that intensity arrives when Ello. C starts with his pre verse hook, talking bout how he's changed, talking about he would never make it, Ello is sure to make these haters and doubters eat their own words. The proof is in the pudding as they say and that pudding will be as sweet as the taste of victory for him as the doubters say they always had his back, not saying it came easily, he mentions how he is self taught and took as many losses as he has wins. Turning the tables on the guys that think they're "the shit" when they haven't had any sort of longevity or experience Ello makes this into a bar about how its just a game saying they don't have the XP's to earn it. Time for a massive shout out to GMC who has so many switch up in flows and styles it was hard to count, coming out with the laid back melodies he then switches up his flow, his style and his face with the best rat impression I've seen since 6ix9ines court appearances. GMC mentions about the longevity he and his team have had comparing their careers to a marathon, cos they run shit as their competition don't have the work in them like they're broken, a short verse bit with good lines and a mix of flows ends with a small Godfather tribute telling the naysayers to kiss the ring. Now then, 210 stand up, the sickness is here that's why he's called Illy. "I ain't with these life saver rapper, I'm busting a hole in their throat" straight up starting with the heat. "I'm sending the weed that I toke" a whole little play of sending smoke Illy is too overlooked in these times, I'm not sure if its commerciality or his rhymes go over heads but this man needs to be looked at by everyone. Ill P carries his word play through-out the remainder of the track, with lots of well written bars including one, about a story i actually heard, he plays on the track Tipsy by J-Kwon saying about fake ID, the story goes J-Kwon was outside a club whilst his hit song was getting played but was denied entry because of his age. Everyone involved in this needs to be recognised including everyone behind the scenes.
Youngn Lipz - Spaceship
The term 'last but not least' is over used, but in this case I cannot stress enough about the quality of this recent release by Youngn Lipz. The laid back beat is perfect for YL's style which can't really be compared to many other Australian artists, i think the only person whom I've heard from Aus that has a similar sound is The Kid Laroi, laid back, not quite rap, nor hip hop, its a mix of a few with a sprinkle of American mumble in there, but it works, and it works well. YL doesn't really follow other trends he's not out saying all he does is hitting licks or trapping like others, many of his tracks are female based and this is the same, fun fact he actually has his real partner in the video rather than a paid model or extra. Saying that however he does mention a time in his past he had to run from the law and wear a mask but he doesn't dwell on it for the whole track, the recent ARPA award winner also touches on fake love from people whom he thought was close and wanted the best for him with the lines "They wanna show me love but it's a boast, brother lower down the tone, say you congratulating no applaud, It don't matter keep it going" the second verse kind of comes in 3 parts, the start is light hearted hearted about a girl whilst the middle is about his closest that are currently serving time, then the end is also about the way he wants to always treat his lady. Now the part of the music video that will be touched on by many, the visuals. This is now the new bar. Moonboy Entertainment, Kevin Bar, Carlin Leota, Lowkee, Bronson Moyle among many others involved have set a precedence in 2021 with their music videos. Film and cinema was the shining light in film making and directing, then there was the era of tv shows, i.e Stranger Things, Game of Thrones, these hit an all time high over recent years. Now is the era of music video's. Part of 2020 and certainly this year music videos have exploded on the scene and the majority of these are from Moonboy Entertainment and others I've mentioned. The details just in this alone deserve honours of the highest, I'm not actually sure if they make Oscars for anything other than film but if they do, these guys are deserving of one. I know I'm ranting on about the quality of this but the biggest thing i want to stress is that, this is just the beginning, this is new, off the top of my head I can only think of 1 director world wide that can match what these guys are doing and that's Cole Bennett (Lyrical Lemonade). Bring on the next video. 2021 belongs to Australian music.