Vijat Mohindra
Every month, The FADER’s Vivian Medithi showcases all the standout rap songs from the past 30-ish days in one unranked list.
Fly Anakin feat. Quelle Chris, $illkmoney, & Fatima, “Socks Over The Smoke Detector,”
Over the sort of subtle ShunGu beat that makes you sit up and listen a little closer, Quelle Chris sets a defiant tone. “Ya favorite rappers is creeps, sneaky links, and Nazis / So I’m glad I’m not on ya Top 5 / I’d rather not be.” Eventually, the song builds to Fatima’s sung bridge but the main draw is $ilkmoney’s verse, which opens with a Cynthia Erivo diss before briefly breaking the fourth wall. “I didn’t know how to transition to my next line but / you n***as don’t listen so you prolly just nod and like that it rhymed.”
Rexv2, “TMSU”
Houston’s Rexv2 has a deliberate vision for his rage rap. “TMSU” (Turn My Shit Up), rides an especially rubbery beat with a syncopation that reminds me of the work of underground producer group sstepteam. His bars are studded with small details, like how his white shooter “don’t gotta rush.” And when he raps, “I’ll do your lil feature lil bro, on God I don’t really need it lil bro,” his boredom is beyond palpable.
MexikoDro, “TWICE”
MexikoDro is a SoundCloud veteran, responsible for producing some of Playboi Carti’s catchiest early hits and pioneering the plugg subgenre as part of BeatPluggz with Corey Lingo, StoopidXool and more. This year, he became a formidable rapper in his own right with a gritty major label debut, Still Goin The EP. Standout “TWICE” is built around a music box-like arpeggio, and MexikoDro casually strolls through the pocket, ambling from childhood memories of his father’s arrest to failed pickups by women at the gas station. These quick asides, however, are less important than telling neighborhood kids to stay out of trouble. Encouraging but not overbearing, MexikoDro’s no-nonsense raps stand out in an era defined by amoral clout chasers.
Ice Spice, “Pretty Privilege”
Ice Spice has been in the midst of a (minor) rebrand following the lukewarm reception to last year’s Y2K!. Recent YouTube loosie “Pretty Privilege” feels promising even if unlikely to become a dancefloor staple. On it, Ice sneers and rolls her eyes over a roiling beat by right-hand producer RIOTUSA, her flow snaking between echoing drums. Between this and the whiplash reception to Nickelodeon cash grab “Big Guy,” I’m not so sure her 15 minutes are over yet.
RRoxket, “Money Count”
Florida rapper RRoxket comes across as a chaotic personality but much of his music is oddly chill — even soothing. That’s the case for “Money Count,” on which Rroxket approaches a woozy instrumental with a legato flow, crooning about beautiful women and shrugging off his Percocet problem. “My migo taaaxin, fuck it I still got the pound / And I’m still gon’ count this paper even with no cap and gown.”
Chow Lee & 2300, “baddie savy”
Queens producer 2300’s slinky beats are what have turned Long Island hornball Chow Lee into rap’s new Casanova. 2300’s contribution here reminds me of “Teach Me How to Dougie,” his wooden drums leaning back in the pocket and smooth vocals countering Chow’s more intense sex raps. But the best moment comes near the end, when Chow interpolates Drake’s verse from “Deuces (Remix)” to even raunchier ends.
1UpTee feat. Nino Paid, “you’ll be ok”
Last summer, Detroit rapper 1UpTee nearly died in a car crash and luckily “only” broke both of his legs, ankles, and his pelvis. So when he encourages listeners to persevere because things will get better on “you’ll be ok,” it’s lived experience talking. He enlists DMV superstar in the making Nino Paid for the gentle hymn, reminiscing on hard-fought victories and the ongoing grind. “Street n***a, mental health we don’t get no help, just prescription pills […] I’m always in my head, can’t vent to hoes, can’t vent to friends,” Tee admits, dejected but never broken.
FLEE & StoopidXool, “NYQ”
The highlight from FLEE and StoopidXool’s new, long-awaited joint album is a spiritual sequel to 2018 hit “Queens.” Xool once again provides a seething plugg beat for FLEE’s borough pride, which he injects with humor: “I’m from Queens, hoe / I need a Queens hoe / She said I kinda look like Gunna, fuck you mean hoe?”
Jaeychino, “Prom Night”
DC rapper Jaeychino sounds like the internet but the impact of his music feels cerebral, like we’re getting an unfiltered peek at the rapper’s intrusive thoughts. On “Prom Night,” his internal dialogue is mostly about how his clothes cost more than your child and he’s toting an AR-15 in an Uber Black, but Jaeychino suffuses these boilerplate topics with a legitimate pathos. When he walks through his #OOTD, the list of designer tags isn’t just a receipt, it’s a victory lap.
