Writers need to use words—a lot of different ones, all the time. Favorites are bound to emerge. Tennessee Williams threw “summer” on four separate titles. Hunter S. Thompson thought “fear and loathing” were the sickest words ever. Octavia Butler loved a good “parable.” I’ve never read Moby-Dick, but it sounds like “whale” is all over that shit.
Larry June & DJ.Fresh, “Organic Motion”
Enter Larry June, $30 charcoal smoothie in hand. By my count, this latest drop marks his 20th (!) song with “organic” in its name. That completes the punch card. As our air thins and our soil molds, San Francisco’s statesman is out doing USDA work on stuff we never even thought to certify. “Fatherhood,” “Racks,” “Secrets,” “Smiles,” all pesticide-free and without genetic modification. “Motion” could be his best one yet, because it’s his first to get DJ.Fresh’s perforated sunshine on the boards. Bass slaps batter the bridge into a pretzel twist (an organic one), but Fresh lays light keys and scratches to straighten it out.
Homeboy Sandman & Jack Splash, “TWENTYFOURSEVEN”
Some zig when others zag. Jack Splash hits us with a zoweeee. We can try to make sense of this man’s career at our own peril. Across three verses, Homeboy Sandman wrings the absolute most out of Splash’s circular jazz suite—which splices a vocal pastiche from James Brown, Rudy Ray Moore, Black Thought, Steve Miller Band and The Jive Five. Queens’ dark horse draws a clock to writhe within it. He charbroils his charms, waters his pinecones, whatever feels right.
Une, “Honey Bees”
“Someone as young and pretty as this has to live a long life. She owes it to the world.” This is the decree of Princess Calamari, a Pittsburgh-based musician and tufter. Her rugs are awesome, but we’re here for these gossamer raps as the self-assured Une. “Honey Bees” floats like antimatter and stings like nothingness. The Fiji Wolfe beat is solid gold stuck in beachrock.
ICY3, “Smooth Chocolate”
Audience, we know what that rubber synth bounce means. It’s time to torment the unsent memory of Charles Cornwallis! ICY3 puts his own flavor on this, but all the boxes get checked. Wok pours onto pavement, because the NHS rocks. Flows bend into AAABB scheme, which is of course a Rio special move. The frozen drum pounds and boss-fight piano rolls are laced by Detroit’s Trapboy3K.
870Glizzy, “BAMN”
The “A” is thrown up for… wait, it’s Arkansas? Mudbaby Ru and YTB Fatt are helping raise the Razorback State up, and 870Glizzy grabs the baton to sprint hurdles across “BAMN” (By Any Means Necessary). His delivery is aggressive but unforced, relentless without strain. The Ruby Dredd beat drives a turbo engine through a dust bowl.
Stunna 4 Vegas & Monaleo, “Yunnnn Wemix”
Stunna 4 Vegas might be the least likely wife guy of all time. He hails from Salisbury, N.C., while Monaleo reps Houston. Their twangs tangle together in true Dirty South symphony. Meeting the moment, producer Merion Krazy summons some Mannie Fresh energies. His 808s skitter around the floor while stepper horns scrape the ceiling. With brass at their backs, the couple turns hotel and tour bus flexes into a his-and-hers spy mission.