A prison sentence might be just as successful in ending a career of a young artist as death (although leaving a slim chance of recovery). In April the Flint underground legend Rio da Yung OG was convicted and sentenced to five years in federal prison on a bum rap. An alleged small mistake in the past was turned into a trophy case when prosecutors still continue to employ an infamous trick using rap lyrics as evidence.
While Rio managed to record an enormous amount of songs and a plentiful features before they locked him up, it caused a major disruption. His imprisonment left the Michigan rap scene with its knickers down, confused and unsure of what to do next. The biggest regional wave of 2020 died down rapidly. Rio’s songs continued to flow even after he went to jail, but Detroit and Flint had very little to show for themselves in the first three quarters of the year. Collaborations went downhill, and solo careers didn’t amount to much. Sada Baby, FMB DZ and Cash Kidd either didn’t put out new music or released mediocracies. YSR Gramz and GrindHard E showed significant improvement, yet hardly changed the game. Peezy, after coming home from prison, dropped a disappointing album. Icewear Vezzo with his Rich Off Pints and Rich Off Pints 2 found his niche, but it’s far from revolutionary.
So the first three quarters of the year, the Michigan rap was dragging behind his last year’s success and, more importantly, California scene. Young Slo-Be and Mac J dropped their hardest tapes, while Cashclick Boog continued to release the coldest cuts, solo and in collaborations.
But the final months turned the tables, quite unexpectedly. BandGang Lonnie Bands outdid himself with the H2K on the Way EP (and less focused Hard 2 Kill LP), Rio dropped Fiend Lives Matter EP from behind bars, and Louie Ray, after a string of mediocre solo CDs, gave us his best yet, Still Unsigned. It’s hard to say now if the Michigan scene finally has found a solid ground after the disruption, or it was just a contingency, and the Detroit/Flint rap as event will not recover. As they say, there is a great disorder under the Heavens and the situation is excellent. Who knows?
Disappointment of the year: Roc Marciano produced albums (Bronze Nazareth’s Ekphrasis and Flee Lord’s Delgado). Roc Marci hasn’t put an album this year but he singlehandedly produced two for Bronze Nazareth and Flee Lord. Both artists are hopelessly boring on any beat, so Marci’s efforts have been wasted. He says he has the best ear in hip hop. He better check his hearing before he produces another CD for an artist with a lack of talent.
Best EP of the year: Nuez x Rio Da Yung OG’s Life of a Yung Og. Rio linked up quite suddenly with a Southern producer Nuez who made Rio rap over early Scarface-like beats. The result was Rio’s most personal tape this year.
Old Man Rap of the year: Soulful Distance by Devin the Dude. Almost unsurpassable achievement: during his 30 years in hip hop Devin’s never put out a bad CD. Soulful Distance is jammed with ironic witticisms and jokes about younger generations of rap artists, too focused on money and designer clothes.
Non-Rap album of the year: Awakening Of Nordic Storm by Diaboli. Nothing revolutionary or trendy or even for a bit experimental here. Just one of the ugliest, dirtiest, unfriendliest pieces of music released in 2021 from these Finnish barbarians. For a new Covid-like plague of woke black metal, this is a true cure.
"What's a.. Steven?" A little sketch of my all time favorite himeworld gem - Peridot! I changed her outfit a little - but I liked those shoulder protectors, hoho.
