If you’ve even paid the littlest bit of attention to hip-hop music recently, you should know that a nostalgic new version of pop-punk is coming back, and so many artists are taking this in stride. Out of everyone doing this, DC the Don is one of my absolute favorites, and after listening to just one song, the reason why is more than evident. He’s just so talented but never tries to overreach or force it, and the results simply speak for themselves. If you’re not entirely familiar with the LA by way of Milwaukee native, his latest A-Dawg and Jug-produced hit “Ghost Rider” is the perfect example and introduction to DC, and the music video that accompanies it is even better. With Director Cobain as well as some directorial help from DC himself, the visual takes heavy inspiration from The Sandlot, one of my personal favorite childhood movies. As it begins, a group of kids are playing a game of pickup baseball, and these youths are supposed to be younger versions of DC and his friends. As they play, a girl comes into the picture who appears to be a love interest for the young talent, but when a ball …

It’s no secret that Internet Money is a label full of masterminds beginning with Taz Taylor and Nick Mira, but the team grows so much deeper than that. When it comes to some of the amazing people that work with IM, they never put their faith into an artist they don’t believe in, and Dro Kenji is the epitome of this. His work and popularity have grown tenfold since working with and signing to the label, and his stock price is only going to continue going up as he continues to prove just how much of a workhorse he truly is. Although he has put out a slew of projects over the past few months alone, I was more than happy to see him revisit one of my personal favorite projects from last year called Tears and Pistols to bring his hit single “Save Me” to life with the help of director Fuck Austyn. Throughout the entire video, Dro is in the middle of darkness as a spotlight shines on him and a lovely female companion who is all over him the entire time. Although this is basically the gist of it all, some of his hand movements are slowed …

I’ve been a massive supporter of underground musicians for the better part of a decade, at this point, and one of my favorite artists from the jump has always been Fat Nick. He just has this nonchalant enthusiasm behind him that combines with always energetic beats that are as aggressive as they are bass-forward, and every song he drops seems to be a hit. Even though it seems like he has taken a bit of time off, at least away from the spotlight, Nick is back and better than ever with his latest song “Risk Taker” produced by FLEXATELLI and REMY, as well as a video directed by Julian Yuri Rodriguez. When it comes to Fat Nick videos, he’s always bringing quite the show with various characters, plots, and other interesting inclusions, and this one is absolutely no different whatsoever. As it opens, a few B-roll shots are taken, the first and most interesting one being with him standing in front of a lavish fountain with a couple of lovely ladies as he holds a Gucci backpack that is the home to a baby kangaroo, showing off some of the exotic ways of life he lives. Later on, he takes …

Making his Lyrical Lemonade debut today is Bay Area r&b artist RASEL. who is making a name for himself in his city with his smooth and intimate brand of music that reveals his innermost feelings and on his latest track “BETTER ALONE” he explores the idea of independence as love fades. He gently croons over the minimalist production that simultaneously creates a wavy, dreamy atmosphere and allows RASEL space to work his vocal magic. The production and mixing of this track was handled by Fino who brought out the warm vocals over the stripped-back yet thumping beat. I am looking forward to hearing more music and seeing new visuals from RASEL over the coming weeks and would definitely recommend adding this song to your playlists.

Out of all of the unique and overlooked places I have uncovered rap talent from, Martinsburg, West Virginia’s Big Sheem might be from what is the most overlooked and simultaneously tumultuous places in all of America, nicknamed ‘Little Baltimore’ because of its recent dramatic increase in crime related to the state’s well-documented extreme opioid problems. From what little I have heard and appears to be out there, most West Virginia rappers, like the rest of the DMV, seem to be borrowing predominantly from the styles of artists and producers in DC, even favoring District based cameramen like the Clockwork Productions team, while putting an almost country twang on their deliveries which in a lot of ways reminds me of the artists in Birmingham, Alabama at the moment. On Big Sheem’s newest track “What Steppa,” he takes to a very DC-inspired instrumental going full-throttle, skating over the beat with his booming flows bar-by-bar. The line from this song that stuck out to me the most was, “Wockeisha hard to find, I’m taxin’ 150 a line, this trap money, we ain’t get no money from Joe Biden,” but many other lines match both this intensity and playfulness that Sheem is menacing enough …

Alt-Pop artist ALX returns with his new single and video for “Right Guy.” The Florida native made an impressionable introduction for himself with his 2020 EP, The Fantasy, and appears ready for the next chapter in his electrifying career. Although still somewhat new, the rising pop savant continues his brash and unfiltered take on pop music that is personified in his latest visual.  Welcomed by ALX’s metallic vocals over a steady kick drum and breezy guitar riffs, the song taps into a combination of alternative pop weaving in and out of rap-delivered lyrics. Illustrating the internal struggle between being the “nice guy” or the “bad guy,” ALX goes back and forth with good and bad versions of himself while trying to figure out who the “right guy” is. The Neal Farmer-directed video is as fun and exciting as the single in creating a world that exemplifies the who-cares attitude that has become synonymous with ALX’s persona and music. Cutting back and forth between shots of the two versions of ALX, and a garage band, megaphone-led performance, the burgeoning pop star makes one thing clear; ALX is going to do things his way and let his off-the-cuff personality lead the charge.  Watch …