Mixtape Review: Kid Akeem’s Playground – Kid Akeem

At the age of 24, Adam Falkner – otherwise known as KID AKEEM – received the biggest news of his life; he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. While the news can be devastating and can send anyone into a spiralling hole, it didn’t stop the hip-hop upriser from persevering and laying all his cards on the table through his ten track mixtape, ‘Kid Akeem’s Playground.’

The upbeat New Jack Swing(ish) style beats and the boisterously dense bassline take turns to shed light on various events in his young life: from the carefree moments of chasing girls (featured in ‘Hello, Say Hi’) to the turbulent emotions after the MS diagnosis (featured in ‘My Letter To The Sky’) and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and becoming a stronger person (featured in ‘Adam’).

With his flow just grooving into different level of tempos from each track, KID AKEEM is very worthy of a place in the underground rap scene and this mixtape deserves a place in any hip-hop head’s collection.

‘Kid Akeem’s Playground’ should be a reminder that no matter how bad things get, you can turn it around – take a look at this guy’s life and sample his mixtape.

Must listens: I Would’t Trade It/Intro, My Letter To The Sky, Good Times, Adam, USA Diamonds.

Track PREMIER: Bow Down – Dice Cannon

Ladies and gentleman, it’s time for y’all to ‘Bow Down’; after a lengthy hiatus away from the underground rap scene, DICE CANNON has bounced right back into the limelight, with spits sharper than a blade and beats that’s guaranteed to give your head that involuntary twitch…don’t believe me, well check it out!

So if you’re feeling this Owl Life Entertainment recruit’s latest project, be sure to look out for his upcoming slammers on NEW LEASE MUSIC.

Upcoming Release: Maybe I’m Wrong – Nors (ft. Tolu Salako)

To mark the launch of their record label, Nors Music, international music collective NORS are all set to release their single, ‘Maybe I’m Wrong’.

Featuring the sensual vocals of Nigerian musician, Tolu Salako, the forthcoming offering features an equally sensual fusion of R&B, pop and reggae (think of a chilled out version to Zouk) with strong presence of the tribal-esque bass and the flirtatious accordion.

Led by Argentinian multi-instrumentalist Alfredo Norese, the growing success NORS is built on the talent from the UK, USA, Africa and India who’ve cracked up attention and support from various independent radio stations and blogs. To ignite their new-found awareness, the team will digitally release one single each month via their brand new label…so keep an eye out for their future projects!

For now, have a listen to ‘Maybe I’m Wrong’, which will be available on all major digital music outlets from 1st May.

New Track: Views Of You – Sofi De La Torre (ft. Taylor Bennett)

Following the release of her previous track $, SOFI DE LA TORRE makes a quick return to NEW LEASE MUSIC, teaming up upcoming Chicago rapper Taylor Bennett for the latest bitter-sweet single, ‘Views Of You’, released on last Friday under her self-style banner #PopDoneRight.

On ‘Views Of You’ both Sofi and Taylor speak regretfully about a lost lover. Soft pads, guitar and delicate fluttering piano allow de la Torre and Taylor’s vocal lines to shine, propelling their vocals to the fore.

Taylor, who recently teamed up with brother Chance The Rapper, Lil Yachty and Jerimih, imparts a robust verse over the delicate instrumental, produced with Finnish producer Jonas Karlsson, who has worked on so many of Sofi’s past successes, including ‘Flex Your Way Out’ feat. Blackbear’. The late-2016 single received extensive support, including an interview with Noisey on Beats 1, her first BBC Radio 1 spin courtesy of Jamz Supernova, and her highest play count yet, with over 5 million hits across Spotify, YouTube and Soundcloud.

‘Views Of You’ is the latest single from the debut album, following the chilled alt-pop cut ‘$’. To mark release of the album, the Berlin-based singer will be visiting London to perform at The Woods in Shoreditch on 13th May – so if you’re in the area, stop by and take in the dreamy R&B pop vibes.

For now, get a taste for things to come and listen to ‘Views Of You.’

 

 

 

Album Review: Eight Days A Week – King Blitz

After a loooong spell away from the scene, KING BLITZ came back bolder with track, ‘That’s Real’, featured on NEW LEASE MUSIC back in January. Now the Indiana wordsmith is keeping the momentum at full speed with his ten-track album, ‘Eight Days A  Week’, released late last month.

A downtempo and menacing bass dominates and runs riot in the latest project, where this young emcee slams down his flow at varying speed. Somehow this smooth operator always comes out on top as his spats seamlessly weave throughout in every single track – well I guess that’s why he’s called KING BLITZ!

There’s some real gems in this set for those who are into alternative hip-hop; go and check it!

Must Listens: 99, New Wave, No Surprise, Yuu, Does It Matter