Hello! 😊👋
Welcome to a new edition of the Daily Music Picks newsletter!
Today’s music pick is an intriguing rap-prog-rock hybrid that’s as affectionate as it is ambitious.
Genre: Hip-Hop, Prog Rock
Label: Quality Control
Release Date: January 27, 2023
Vibe: 😯
There may be albums that will rank higher on many people’s “best of” lists come the end of 2023, but few records will carry the disruptive weight of Let’s Start Here. On first listen, it sounds less like a modern rap record and more like a psychedelic ode to prog rock’s greatest hits, clearly drawing inspiration from the likes of Pink Floyd, King Crimson, and Tame Impala. But this isn’t a half-baked crossover attempt — the grandeur of the musical backdrop never drown’s out the rapper/musician’s unique voice, literally and figuratively. This synergy helps the album transcend both genre and audience expectations, producing a statement that feels like an exceedingly rare pop culture commodity: a new idea.
Yachty’s unwillingness to stay within the confines of hip-hop’s stylistic walled garden shouldn’t come as a surprise either. He’s an emcee who hasn’t exactly shied away from making controversial claims about the genre’s forefathers, nor is he interested in staying in oversimplistic lanes for the sake of identifiability. At a listening event for Let’s Start Here, he made his intentions clear: “I wanted to be taken seriously as an artist… not just some SoundCloud rapper, not some mumble rapper.” It’s a refreshing, exciting disposition that, if nothing else, makes me even more curious as to where he’ll go next sonically.
👉 Don’t forget to click the album image to stream the album on your favorite platform 👈