Hip-hop recap: 5 rap releases we recommend this week

For music fans, Friday not only means the weekend, but also release day. Especially in the short-lived world of hip-hop, it’s easy to miss something with the sheer volume of new releases every week. So that this doesn’t happen to you again, from now on we will regularly present the most important hip-hop releases in the hip-hop recap. Whether it’s albums, EPs or singles.

Included this week: Eli PreissRamzey, Josi, Dead Dawg and redveil.

The third album BAD by the Viennese singer Eli Preiss is her most adult to date. The mood on the record is – lyrically and musically – depressing. Alongside the instrumentals, which are characterized by sub-bass, old-school synths and breakbeats, Eli Preiss provides lyrics about complicated relationships, mental health and other burning issues of Generation Z. She presents them alternating between singing and rapping, at times their vocals are somewhere in between. BAD may not be an album that evokes classic spring fever, but it should pick up many Gen Z listeners exactly where they are at the moment.

Ramzey – “Feminist”

The new single by the Frankfurt rapper Ramzey with the title “Feminist” takes a completely different approach. The two producers Funkvater Frank and yaze deliver a banging trap beat, on which Ramzey presents uncompromising lines with an equally uncompromising flow. A certain sense of humor cannot be denied in the track either: “I’ll tell the cops they could get me from the supermarket because I’m innocent‘ raps the uncle, as the Frankfurt resident likes to call himself, in the hook. As usual, Ramzey doesn’t mince his words on “Feminist”. If you don’t have a problem with one or the other bad word, you should listen here. “Feminist” is a single from Ramzey’s new tape. It should be released in early July, a title is not yet known.

Josi – “MAN DOWN”

Josi reports back with the “Man Down” drill board. The young woman from Frankfurt settles accounts with posers who talk about their apparently hard life but know nothing about real problems. The 18-year-old producer stxrm808 processed a violin sample for the instrumental, which he underscored with drill-typical drums and bass. The end product is a successful drill track from Germany, which cannot be taken for granted. A music video for the song, produced by Maine Blick, is available on YouTube.

Dead Dawg – “blog”

“She wants to get back in my head, I’ll let her, but I’d rather be alone,” Dead Dawg sings on his new track Blogg. The soft, melancholic beat of MotB complements the thoughtful lyrics of Pablo Grant, as Dead Dawg is called in civil society. The BHZ rapper presents this in a high voice, whereby the autotune, which he uses as a stylistic device, is clearly audible. There’s also a music video that Grant directed himself. “blogg” is a single from his new album LIEBE UND SCHMERZ, which is due out on May 26, 2023.

redveil – PLAYING W/ FIRE

Redveil is a phenomenon. His album LEARN 2 SWIM (2022), which he released without a label on his 18th birthday (April 20), was considered an insider tip by many underground hip-hop fans. Almost exactly one year later – on April 21, 2023 – the independent artist from the Washington area released the EP PLAYING W/ FIRE. The EP shows increased self-confidence, especially in terms of production. Lyrically, the now 19-year-old can’t quite match the closeness and intimacy of LEARN 2 SWIM, but still delivers six beautiful tracks that give fans a glimpse into the brain of a 19-year-old star. On the track “black enuff” redveil was able to secure a feature from JPEGMAFIA and thus ensure a musical highlight.

Other notable releases

This list does not claim to be complete. Therefore, here are other releases that are worth a look:

• Kolya Goldstein – GLOBAL
• Summer Cem, reezy – “BETTER DAYZ”
• 01099, Paul, Ski Aggu – “Different”
• Mauli – “Trespassing”
• Your Old Droog, Madlib – “Pronouns”
• Chase Fetti, Conway The Machine – “ONLINE”
• The Weeknd, Future – “Double Fantasy”