Brandon Bally’s latest hit, ‘Pew Pew‘, is an electrifying fusion of Hip-Hop and R&B that’ll have you hooked from the first beat. Hailing from Pittsburgh, PA, Bally brings a fresh vibe to the scene, blending introspective lyrics with infectious hooks. ‘Pew Pew’ is the ultimate club anthem, drawing on Jersey Club Music influences to deliver a dancefloor banger that’ll keep you moving all night long. Authentic and energizing, Bally’s music is a must-listen for anyone craving good quality music.
Tommy Marsh, is a 21-year-old rapper/singer-songwriter from Maslins Beach. Tommy’s been writing his own songs since he was 9, and performing live is his absolute favourite thing in the world. The energy from an audience enjoying his music is an incredible feeling that he cherishes.
Starting out in a creative school, Tommy was fortunate to unlock his musical talents at a young age. His big dream? To make a positive impact through his music, motivating others to make positive changes in themselves and the world around them.
Surf Ct is a bold heavy rap track that dives into Tommy’s experiences growing up. The lyrics touch on overcoming bullying, playing sports, and finding resilience through personal passion. The memorable hook revolves around “Surf Court,” a steep street where the Tommy grew up, adding a nostalgic and relatable element. This song is a response to fans wanting more personal insights, showcasing Tommy’s growth in storytelling and his ability to seamlessly blend poetry with rap. Overall, Surf Ct offers a raw and authentic glimpse into the artist’s past, marking a significant step forward in his musical journey.
From a young age, Adelaide based Hip-Hop Artist Stefan Rossi has always been a charismatic, loving and entertaining person. Growing up, Stefan captivated his family, friends and peers’ attention by singing, acting and impersonating characters at birthdays, school and even in his lounge room at home. However,
from a very young age Stefan has suffered with Anxiety, especially when he was alone Stefan struggled to slow down his mind.
He found his love for music and his attention to lyricism grew and that’s when his obsession with Hip Hop began. He started writing his own songs, putting all his money from his casual job into his music Creating a local following in Adelaide he then performed support shows for acts Fat Joe, Tyga, Omarion and more. With music, Stefan had found a way to cope with his anxiety. By being vulnerable and speaking his truth with songwriting he realised he could connect with people who were just like him, facing internal and external challenges of self-doubt, negative narratives & pessimistic perspectives. Stefan was going to lead them into a ‘new beginning’.
In May 2022 Stefan Rossi released his debut EP ‘Faith Over Fear’ and played a show at UniBar to a crowd of 250 patrons to celebrate. ‘Going South’ from Faith Over Fear was featured on 2 Spotify Editorial playlists ‘Mellow Styles’ & ‘Fresh Finds’ multiple songs from ‘Faith Over Fear’ made their way to Triple J’s airwaves.
If electric & energetic Hip Hop had a movie trailer, ‘CLOUDS’ would be it! Stefan is focused – yet celebrating the wins and he wants us all at the party. Stefan’s liquid-metal cadence fits in the perfect pocket of this fierce instrumental. These punchlines have clever references and this is an exuberant hook for the ages.
JaeWav, also known as Jae Markwick is a 19-year-old Singer/Songwriter from Adelaide, South Australia. Jae grew up listening to acts such as Guy Sebastion, Hilltop Hoods & Eminem. In 2020 after the debut of The Kid LAROI, Jae began writing and recording songs. His music inspirations are The Kid LAROI, Juice WRLD, and the Hilltop Hoods. Come 2022 Jae found his sound with a mix of Hyperpop and Melodic trap. Gearing up and getting ready to release his debut project ‘Heartbreak & Harmonies’
Heartbreak & Harmonies is a fast-paced, high-energy Hyperpop / Hip-Hop song by JaeWav. Heartbreak & Harmonies talks about a failed relationship Jae went through where his partner cheated on him with someone close – the worst type of betrayal. Jae talks about how this feeling and experience sent him off the rails temporarily causing him to indulge in substances and waste all his money partying.
Based out of Adelaide, Australia, B.Z.A and ALMIGHTYDUT are artists who frequently experiment with different sounds and influences. They have the ability to deliver vocals in an aggressive and raw manner but can also switch it up and deliver with more melodic sounding auto-tuned vocals.
I talked to B.Z.A and ALMIGHTYDUT, here’s what they had to say about their new track ‘Savage $hit’
“The creative process behind the record ‘Savage Shit’ was us being able to express our emotions in more of an abrasive way over a trap style beat. The concept of writing the record was me (BZA) talking about life experience with people from my past, such as others hating the type of music I make and making me feel as if I need to quit, now I aint take s*** from nobody. I recorded my verse in just under an hour as I was free-styling punching in bar for bar. Savage Shit is the second single coming off our upcoming mixtape dropping in the next couple of months.”
“Avenue of the Aspects” is just such a massive track! Big O is so clean on the production, from the sample choices, the drum selection and all of the subtle little transitions that add depth to each verse. L.O.U. has the first verse, and let’s be honest, the man sets a pretty high bar as he spits with cadence. Complexity that sounds easy with deep bars about self-discovery without missing a beat. Doughboy Tony is up next with a flow to match the greats with bars that stay on topic from a more street aspect. P-Rawb closes this track out with his signature unorthodox but always pleasing rap style. Examining a third and refreshing philosophical outlook on life. This is the longest track on the album, but it’s worth every second. Great job, fam!
“The Preordained” was always going to make the review top 3; it’s in the name. No, but seriously, L.O.U. comes in so hard on this one, and he maintains his heavy-hitting flow for the entire 3 minutes and 13 seconds. In my humble opinion, this is the best rap performance on the whole project. Big O is as consistent as ever, excellent production on this track, providing L.O.U. with the right amount of space to really ride the beat.
“Reality Hits”, I think this track had me at the James Baldwin sample. What a way to start a track! L.O.U. kicks us off again on the penultimate track proving that he has one of the most consistent flows in the game right now. Frannie EL brings a super fresh melodic verse to the mix. This is a nice touch to an album with nothing but clean beats and heavy bars. Big O’s production here is perfect, creating the ideal balance to render Frannie El’s melodic verse as salt and pepper on what has really been a full course, five-star meal.
This is a very well put together album, and I was impressed by all involved. If I’m being honest, I don’t know if there was a clear weak link in terms of track selection, beat selection and artist selection. Everyone came ready to contribute, and the end product is something to be proud of. If you’re a fan of real hip hop projects, then this one is for you. Go follow both of these guys on socials: L.O.U. & @bigrodamous
Los Angeles rhyme veteran, Born Allah, has teamed up with German production powerhouse, Zpu Zilla, to bring us something special this week in “Analog Baby”. This is a 6 track EP which is definitely one for all the real hip hop heads out there. The dynamic duo enlisted the collaboration of DJ Mark Luv and Rakaa and the combinations are deadly!
“Dedication”, wow! What a way to begin. The production itself is a hit, then you get DJ Mark Luv to bless the track some more and Born Allah does what he does best. Born Allah’s flow is hard hitting but also cool, calm and collected all at the same time. Clever rhyme schemes as he effortlessly rides the drums with even more clever bars. My favourite part about this is that it genuinely sounds like he is having fun with it. Witty and braggadocios, this is hip hop!
“Analog Baby” is the third track on the EP and once again, that production! You can probably tell that I am pretty excited about the way Zpu Zilla cuts up samples and laces them with some of the cleanest hip hop drums I have heard in a long time. Born Allah consistently delivers heat, merging impressive wordplay with a catchy hook. This song captures the vibe of the project from start to finish. Beats, bars and what seems like an everlasting cadence.
“Jabril (Let the Horns Blow)” is the final track on the EP and features Rakaa of Dilated Peoples, and man, does this song live up to the hype! Born Allah starts us off as Zilla literally lets the horns blow. From that point on this song is filled with lethal bars, buttery smooth flows and truly world class production. Rakaa gives us everything that we love about him and more. It’s rare that we are blessed with the opportunity to hear two veteran wordsmiths just devour a beat like this. Thank you Born Allah and Rakaa, I am so glad I was here for this!
If you have made it this far, you will know that I really enjoyed this body of work and I think you will too. It was pure hip hop through and through. This is the kind of EP that will be talked about as a classic. A genuine congratulations to all involved, you really blessed us with this! Go follow Born Allah on Instagram: @daddygrace
Shaw Calhoune is a rapper from Maryland who has recently blessed us with his new 9 track album, “The Rudy Tape”. The rapper, known for his heavy hitting bars and boom bap production, enlists the help of some very cool samples from the late, great Rudy Ray Moore, himself. From start to finish, this tape is sprinkled with sound bites of the Godfather of Rap.
“Rudy Moore” is the second track on the project and Shaw delivers a special performance. Several different flows and multi syllable rhyme schemes over production that has you feeling like going for a cruise in a Coupe Deville. This beat is menacing, gritty and gangster. The perfect way to start this project.
“Henny Bottles” is a future classic. Minimal percussion, but a super lush bass laced with a string section and some keys. This is whiskey and cigar music. Shaw’s flow is consistent on this song, reminiscent of a Rick Ross vibe as he uses his lyricism to embody the character of the 70’s pimp, Dolemite. Yes, as far as concept albums go, this is truly impressive.
“Changing of The Guard” is another stand out. That sax was among my favourite moments in this entire project. Again, this one isn’t heavy on the percussion. But it is big on the horns and the woodwind sections. This gives Shaw Calhoune the opportunity to smoothly ride over the beat, playing with different rhyme schemes and seamlessly switching flows. His gritty delivery gives this song a heavy presence without the need for a hard hitting kick.
If you love samples, boom bap, clever rhyme schemes, story telling lyricism and concept projects; then this is the album you have been waiting for! I am honestly pretty happy that this was the first album that I got to review for the year. Shaw Calhoune has set the bar nice and high. This project had a consistent cadence to it that I haven’t heard in a while. Calhoune used vocal samples from Rudy Moore to really bring everything together and the story telling was masterful. Follow him on Instagram: @shaw_thegreat
Arquiteko Verbal is a bilingual Los Angeles based hip hop artist who mixes complex rhyme schemes with refreshing production to take his listeners on a trip into his mind on every track. I recently got the chance to listen to his latest body of work, “The Feature Presentation”. This album sounds like it was made for vinyl! I’ll gladly say off the bat that this is filled with 11 super cool tracks, all produced by Orchestrated Sounds, and some very carefully curated features to make it all come together.
“Who got the power” was a clear stand out for me. Orchestrated Sounds did an amazing job on the production and Arquitekto brought the bars and the flows, in abundance. Lyrically this is a thought provoking track as Arquitekto takes us through his thoughts on the political state of the world in recent years. This is track is just one example of his versatility and what I really love is that he manages to do this without being boring or corny.
“Carpool” is a vibe. The production places you right in the middle of a sunny day in California. Each verse quite literally slides in, adding a new level of depth to the song as Cuartesmatic and ASP add their diverse styles to the mix. This is a very cool track and a really good example of Arquitekto’s natural gift of being able to carefully select artists who are not only talented, but will also add genuine value to the song that they appear on.
“Hamij” is a jam. Jazzy samples, boombap drums, slick flows, a catchy hook and a dope feature from Murderdatt. Lyrically the song pays homage to some of hip hop’s greats, no doubt the artists who inspired both of these songwriters. This song is clever and gets you instantly bopping your head.
In closing, I really enjoyed this project and if you are into authentic, honest and provocative west coast hip hop, then this is for you too. If you are bilingual and understand spanish, then I’ve also been told that this tape features some hard hitting spanish bars. Unfortunately my Spanish isn’t so good anymore, but regardless, this is a great project. Other noteable tracks were “Take Cover” featuring Choize Areef and M.I.E and “Love Hangover” featuring Francisco Baites. Go follow Arquitekto Verbal on Instagram: @arquitekto_verbal
