Tag: Music

Song of the Day: Feelings – Caviar Gabe

Launching himself into the scene as a solo artist, dropping vibey and left of field bangers, CAVIAR GABE is making it clear from the offset he’s not playing around this year with single ‘Feelings’.

Originally from London but being raised in South Africa, Caviar Gabe’s unique upbringing provides a catalyst for an even more unique sound. Combining braggadocious and thoughtful bars with ethereal and vibey instrumentation, Gave creates an intoxicating style of floaty UK rap, courtesy of his unique cadence and accent from spending life in both the UK and SA. His trappy and bouncy style is hard to pinpoint, yet reminiscent of his contemporary UK rap peers such as Blaze YL, Knucks and Sam Wise. Gabe’s voice glides across the instrumental in a woozy yet stylistic manner, and harnesses a captivating hook that utilizes his laidback delivery, weaving his way through the pockets in the instrumental. With the subtlety of the arrangement, all working together to enhance his introspective bars.

Growing up in Johannesburg, South Africa, made a huge impact on how Gabe views the world, and in turn, his music. Talking about his experience, he explains: “Growing up, I wasn’t raised by bad parents. They tried to give me everything, but we were tainted, and when everything went south, I tried to find escapes, hustling just to make sure I was treated equally by my peers. I grew up with robbers and killers with hearts of gold, peacekeepers too. Mainly influenced by zulu traditions and cultures, I saw the complete contrast between extreme wealth and extreme poverty, fought for human rights, got shot at by police and had more heartbreaks than you could count.”

Being influenced by musicians such as David Bowie and Mick Jagger on his fathers side, to his mother rooting him in Soul, R&B, Reggae and Dance, Caviar Gabe’s inspirations are an eclectic mix of different cultures. Such inspirations have clearly affected Gabe’s aesthetic, and gives explanation for the importance he places on his visuals and imagery. Gabe’s artsy and edgy style provides the perfect backdrop for his equally edgy music.

With this being Caviar Gabe’s first serious release of the year, with plenty more in the works including a project coming in the summer, “Feelings” acts as a flag in the ground for his intentions in 2021. Check out the official video for Gabe’s single below…

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OUT TODAY: ATO Drops Reflective Track, ‘Cold’ + Video

Leeds-based and of British-Ghanaian-Danish descent, rising rapper ATO (pronounced: atu) follows his recent Flohio remix of 2021 Side A’s introspective banger ‘no caroline’ with his latest offering ‘COLD’ via MCMXCV. Putting his identity as a northern rapper from Leeds front and centre, over an emotive yet ominous stevexcooper produced beat, ATO muses about the exclusive nature of the London scene and his everyday frustrations.

Dropping alongside the single today is an Untold Studios Production, Eve Mahoney directed video that compliments the fast pace energy of the song. Sporadic moments of luminar mish mash interspersed with performance shots of ATO mirror his stream of consciousness and according to ATO “gives weight to the feeling behind the bars”.

Speaking on the single, ATO says: “COLD is a stream of consciousness that addresses my everyday vexations. As an outsider from Leeds, I find the industry politics and exclusive nature of the London scene a bit weird. I wanted to express who I am against the backdrop of these frustrations.

I was working on some other music at the time but was feeling to get a few of these things off my chest, so I hit stevexcooper for something I could rap over… He sent a beat titled ‘reflections’ and the energy was perfect. I wrote the verses that night intended for a freestyle and then ended up adding the COLD hook later.”

Check out ATO’s video for ‘Cold’ below…

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Producer Redd Tunes Drops EP, ‘Dead Poets Society’.

Championed within the Britcore and hip-hop community, producer REDD TUNES rallies up another slick lineup for his new EP, ‘Dead Poets Society’, out now via Brandcamp.

Verging on the side of the smoothest Britcore with a slight kick of boom bap, the lineup includes hip-hop contenders, Isis Aset and Mars Noel, who give the EP that much-needed fire introduction with track, ‘The Coincidence’. Rapper Fya Da Flame takes over on the second effort, ‘Lets Go’. Fya Da Flame was recently featured on Redd Tunes’ collaborative project with Ads The Barbican titled ‘The Lone Ranger’.

Hip-hop duo, Eric Beardmen finishes up the set nicely with ‘Jazz Cafe Freestyle’, where he tackles the satisfying bluesy joint with his fiery bars. The pair first perform the smooth track at the London’s venue (Jazz Cafe).

‘Dead Poets Society’ EP was released on 14th March via Redd Tunes Productions. have a listen below…

Must Listens: Dope Sick, Jazz Cafe Freestyle

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Song of the Day: Life Waters – Jaz Valentino

Out now via Canadian indie label and collective Day7 Records, JAZ’S BLUES (SIDE A) is the brand new sophomore album from Toronto hybrid artist, songwriter, and musician JAZ VALENTINO. The 8-track album is the second full-length project in two years from the Grenadian-Serbian native, following last year’s introductory album Day 7, which led to Jaz Valentino reaching the milestone of garnering his first million streams on Spotify alone.

The melodic rap and R&B fusion album Jaz’s Blues (Side A) was preceded by two well-received lead singles that were released to open Jaz Valentino’s 2022 – the Buckroll Beats-produced ‘Snowflakes’, which has garnered over 100,000 plays online, and the recently released introspective offering produced by Arcane Beats titled ‘Wild Weeds’, which is currently being supported by Live Nation’s Ones To Watch, 1883 Magazine, Earmilk and Word Is Bond Magazine, among others.

Jaz’s Blues (Side A) opens with ‘Farmers Land’, a tribute to Jaz Valentino’s father, who passed away from liver cancer when Jaz was only 13, before digging deeper into his trust issues on ‘Eunoia’, addressing his friendships on songs like ‘King City’ and ‘Like Minds’, refocusing on his faith on ‘Blue F’, and closing out the album with ‘Life Waters’, which is about starting over with a clean slate, and features Jaz’s grandmother, who practically raised him.

Speaking about the inspiration behind the album, Jaz Valentino says, “‘Jaz’s Blues (Side A)’ is me baring my soul in the music about the last three years of my life and what I’ve been going through. Flowers come out of the growth process, but no one talks about the pain the bud or seedling go through in the process, and this is what the album represents. I wrote these songs through the pandemic, through finding my feet in the music industry, through countless rejections and breakups.“

Born and raised in Canada, Jaz Valentino’s music blurs the line between the classic warm tones of R&B and the dynamism of modern hip-hop, while still leaning on his special connection with R&B and rap music. Notable for his evocative sounds, lush melodies, layered texture, captivating hook and introspective lyrics, Jaz Valentino has long been able to connect with listeners on a deeper level, using his ‘less is more’ philosophy to make sure his mixes are not overly crowded, and his songs feel spacious and lush, with plenty of room for his songwriting to stick out.

Now it’s time for you to check out the official video for Jaz’s ‘Life Waters’ below…

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Song of the Day: Ancient Alibi – Akif Daboor

An artist in the making, AKIF DABOOR, expresses how blessed he is to come from an Egyptian ancestry through his latest single, ‘Ancient Alibi.’ Hailing from New York, the young spitter showcases his distinct flow and raw lyrical energy over a smooth, old-school boom-bap sample.

Citing hip-hop luminaries such as 2Pac, Big L, Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., and Kanye West as his main influences, Akif started rapping at the young age of 17. Today, he indeed shows the prospective listener that he’s a serious rap contender ready to lock horns in this music industry.

Check out ‘Ancient Alibi’ below…

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