Mixtape Monday: Nyck @ Knight, Skyzoo, DJ Rahdu, Curren$y + More
New heat from up-and-comers and established spitters alike, including Nyck @ Knight, Skyzoo and Curren$y.
Pro Era’s Nyck Caution and Kirk Knight drop their first tandem release as Nyck @ Knight. Fresh off of dope releases, Skyzoo and Curren$y keep it ultra prolific with brand new tapes. Detroit representative D. Focis salutes 9th Wonder on The Detroit Wonderful tape and DJ Rahdu gives a clinic on all things D’Angelo with his latest set for WhoSampled.
Get more after the jump.
D. Focis - The Detroit Wonderful
Detroit’s own D. Focis drops the latest in his Legacy Series with the arrival of The Detroit Wonderful tape. Following tributes to Madlib, J Dilla and Kanye West, the 10-track tape finds Focis spitting proper bars over a handful of soulful productions by 9th Wonder.
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Nyck Caution x Kirk Knight - Nyck @ Knight
Pro Era’s Nyck Caution and Kirk Knight join forces on their self-titled Nyck @ Knight tape. The lyrically dense project produced by Knight, I-900 and Chuck Strangers boasts one feature from The Pros on the brooding posse cut “Audiopium.” Appropriately, the track includes a contribution from Capital STEEZ.
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Wave Chapelle - It’ll All Make Sense Soon 2
Milwaukee spitter Wave Chappelle follows It'll All Make Sense Soon and the Maajei Vu produced single “Authentic” with the It’ll All Make Sense Soon 2 tape. Eleven tracks deep, the project is a wavy, experimental trap release that combines bouncy, emotive production with candid and aspirational lyricism.
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J. Lately - Nachos EP
Left Coast representative and Unusual Suspect, J. Lately, follows The Good Panda with the Nachos EP produced by Creature In The Woods. The 3-track project is an exercise in lyrical finesse that features straightforward melodic beats, punchy verses and a breezy aesthetic from top to bottom.
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Curren$y - The Champagne Files
Arguably NOLA’s most prolific lyricist, Curren$y returns with his latest tape entitled The Champagne Files. Another one for the 420-friendly heads to blast in their whips, TCF is driven by Spitta’s signature laid back flow and chill production. Standouts include “Junior Mints,” “1942” and “Spray.”
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Phoelix - GSPL
Illinois producer and multi-instrumentalist Phoelix steps out with the release of GSPL. The 7-track debut release follows his contributions to Noname’s Telefone and Saba Pivot’s Bucket List Project. While GSPL gets off to a slow start, the second half boasts a promising handful of tunes led by the gospel-inflected “Half & Half.”
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Skyzoo - Peddler Themes
Less than one year removed from the release of the Apollo Brown collaborative album The Easy Truth, Skyzoo resurfaces with an absolute banger in the form of Peddler Themes. The 8-track release billed as an “abbreviated soliloquy” features production from Skyzoo, Brown, !llmind, Tuamie, Marc Nfinite and Arte Mitchell.
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Intricate The Almighty - Portal Jump
Intricate The Almighty of Florida’s CAP6 collective drops a gem with the arrival of the Portal Jump tape. The 21-track project produced by offbeatninja is a certified dose of hip-hop music perfect for any time of day. Dense with clever lyricism, quirky production and infectious hooks, Portal Jump is a refreshing collection of jams.
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Black Fantastic - Black Fantastic
Chicago to L.A. duo Black Fantastic is resurrected with the Soulvember Records reissue of the self-titled project from the now defunct duo of Roman Lee Norfleet and Jacque Hammond. The 13-track project is a soulful journey to the afrofuture that remains fresh over three years after its debut, in part, because it was and still is ahead of its time.
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DJ Rahdu x WhoSampled - D'Angelo: Connecting the Dots
DJ Rahdu serves up 43 minutes of funk from D’Angelo’s celebrated catalog with his latest set for WhoSampled. The mix contains a host of original samples, fan favorites and live audio. This is a serious treat for Soulquarian fans ahead of the Brown Sugar reissue.
For our latest guest mix, DJ Rahdu of the crew of tastemaking soul aficionados 'Bamalovesoul' delivers a D'Angelo themed mix. Over three quarters of an hour Rahdu explores D'Angelo's influences with a mix that joins the dots between tracks the Soulquarian has sampled or covered alongside his own tracks with live versions and interview extracts for added flavor.