Royce da 5'9 - A Part of Me

This is one of the weirdest tracks to do a video for but yeah Royce's new full-length is gonna be tight. He's one of those rappers who really seems to be getting better / more interesting with time. While I love classic Premier joints like Boom, and Royce has always been a monster lyrically, his persona always struck me as (fairly or not) kind of bland, his flow a little too measured & generic to come back to over & over, someone I could respect from a distance, the ultimate koch flagship artist. But with the two bar exam mixtapes from last year, his collab with Black Milk I posted the other day, the stirring passion in his vocals for "Shake This," (a Premier track that isn't aiming to sound like A Premier Track -- compared to say "Hip Hop"'s "Above the Clouds" redux) it really feels like hes hit another stage. Now comes this twilight zone joint with the surprise ending, the chorus that bookends the track & takes on a whole new meaning the second time. It doesn't feel gimmicky just bcuz the story is so weird, dose of that pulpy midwest horrorcore. Not that this is really out of step with his background & older recordings by any means; but it is just exceptional on every level.

Definitely anticipating this record.

Check out Ich Luge Bullets 'The Year in Royce Da 5'9 Tracks' piece from January.