Category: Blog

Written by Jacob Ezra

With 2021 coming to a close, we look back at the independent music scene as one positive takeaway from a year of confusion and volatility. With many strong releases this year, we had trouble narrowing down a definitive list, but here are Roundhouse Music’s selections of 10 songs that truly stood out to us, all released by independent hip-hop artists.

Rx Papi & Gud- “N.L.M.B.”

A highlight track off Rx Papi & Gud’s refreshing project Foreign Exchange, “N.L.M.B.” encapsulates the record’s forward-thinking, expressive sound. With an bold, icy instrumental influenced by cloud rap, and exciting, bracing flows from Rx Papi, this is a highly memorable cut.

LORD JAH-MONTE OGBON- “Where are you?, Pt. 2”

Containing a smooth, addictive instrumental cloaked in nostalgic warmth, “Where are you?, Pt. 2” is another strong offering in the growing catalogue of eclectic rapper LORD JAH-MONTE OGBON. With clever, memorable lyrics spun into fresh, creative patterns, “Where are you?, Pt.2” has been in heavy rotation for us this year.

John Robinson- “Heavy Ghetto” (ft. Eloh Kush & Blu)

On “Heavy Ghetto”, glitchy, immersive production from Blu pairs beautifully with John Robinson & Eloh Kush‘s dynamic flows to create a stimulating listening experience. The trio share an undeniable chemistry here, lending itself to a track that feels highly cohesive, yet also excitingly chaotic.

Fatboyshaun & Trox- “Timmy Chans”

One of our favourites from the latter half of this year, “Timmy Chans” is an elegant, charismatic cut from rapper Fatboyshaun and producer Trox. Here, a glowing, raw instrumental containing swirling guitars and heavy drums creates a strong foundation for Fatboyshaun’s lively flows, keeping the listener on their toes throughout.

Lonely Guest, Tricky & Kway- “On a Move”

Forward-thinking UK artist collective Lonely Guest‘s “On a Move”, featuring Tricky and Kway, is an infectious, atmospheric track that had us hooked from the get-go. With enticingly crisp flows and a shimmering, minimalistic instrumental, this cut provides a welcomingly refreshing sound.

Deca- “Sleepwalker”

New York-based Deca‘s “Sleepwalker” is an evocative instrumental hip-hop offering that effectively captures a mood of nostalgic beauty. With warm, laid-back guitars and textural percussion, this beat inspires one to replay memories from their life when listening. “Sleepwalker” appears Deca’s recent project, the vivid, reflective Source Material.

YL- “In The Air”

New York rapper YL had a highly prolific 2021, releasing 4 strong solo projects including the forward-thinking SODA CLUB and the glitchy IT NEVER ENTERED MY MIND. Despite having so many tracks to choose for this list from YL in 2021, “In The Air” stood out for its breezy production and reflective, memorable rhymes. With swirling vocal samples that play out hypnotically and lyrics that beckon multiple re-listens, “In The Air” makes a good case for one of our favourites this year.

Visual 9- “On bro”

Ohio artist Visual 9‘s “On bro” pairs a sentimental instrumental with thought-provoking, focused rhyming to create a track chock full of personality. The instrumental for “On bro” is sublime, centred around organic keys playing out in a memorable melody as subtly glitchy drums riding out beneath. Moreover, Visual 9’s rhymes are engaging and his lyrics refreshingly personal and sharply crafted, making for an engaging listening experience overall.

Prado- “STEPHEN”

“STEPHEN” is a hypnotic, energizing banger from Vancouver, Canada’s Prado, pairing an adrenaline-fuelled instrumental with sharply-crafted melodies and smooth flows. A cut off her strong 2021 EP PRADO MONROE, this is a release that offers a powerful sound and heavy replay value.

Bungalow Collect- “Clutch”

Genre-blending New York group Bungalow Collect‘s “Clutch” is a spacey, exciting track that stood out for its futuristic sound and dynamic vocals. Here, the group’s members Rshad, Apollo J, Marcus Isiah, and Zay Suav trade effortlessly charismatic verses, displaying the group’s natural chemistry and sharp songwriting ability.

Written by Damilola Grey

Alley Rocket is back with the long-awaited deluxe edition to his 2020 tape, Apollo Boy. The 12 track tape contains production from Dren, Svgar Beats, Martian on the Beat, Saman, as well as others. While Apollo Boy was an album full of melodies, Rocket uses the deluxe version to show off his insane rapping ability. Whether it’s the intro “Big Step”, or the Nick Straight-assisted “Okay Lil” or even teh Dren and 809 produced “Stimmy”, Alley Rocket shows the world that his rapping ability is not to be played with. This tape also features a few melodic tracks like “Whatever It Is” and “Dream of Me”. Apollo Boy Deluxe Edition is an album without skips, and honestly one of the hardest to drop this year.

The visuals for “Big Step” were released on December 24th on Rap Villain‘s official YouTube page:

Listen to Apollo Boy Deluxe Edition now:

Massachusetts artist Matt Maratea has returned with a new single called “Landslide”. Here, a bracing, rugged instrumental containing chilling, grand samples and booming percussion sets a strong foundation for Maratea’s energizing vocals. He comes through with some memorable verses and a catchy, sharply-crafted hook that gives this single much replay value. Maratea appears to be entering the new year in top form with “Landslide”, an offering that encapsulates his powerful, atmospheric sound.

By Damilola Grey

Dami: What was your first introduction to hip hop?

Brandon Ryan: Well I remember I got my hands on a 50 Cent “Get Rich or Die Tryin” CD when I was like 6 or 7.

Dami: What made you wanna start rapping?

Brandon Ryan: I don’t think there’s a single reason I did. I just enjoyed music, mostly hip-hop and I started playing around with FL Studio when I was like 15. Since then, I’ve enjoyed making music.

Dami: Where do you grab inspiration from when making music?

Brandon Ryan: I’ve always been creative with my ideas. Taking a 15 minute walk while I’m alone with my thoughts or listening to music always helps me focus on one idea.

Dami: What’s your creative process like?

Brandon Ryan: I usually just focus on one idea at a time for a song or for a full project, then I start producing for it and writing lyrics. Sometimes, random rhymes start connecting in my head for different lines and I just try to jot them down.

Dami: Who are your biggest musical inspirations?

Brandon Ryan: Well they changed over time from hip hop to all music genres now. However, two people who I know personally really inspire me- PlamoZ and Nick James a.k.a. Willi Nilli. If I had to pick a few mainstream artists, it would be Kid Cudi, Kanye, Mac Miller, Gorillaz, and people who push music boundaries in general.

Dami: You have an album dropping on the 24th titled “My Ego Chased Me Away”. What should we expect from it?

Brandon Ryan: Honestly, a lo-fi centric sound and a few emotional songs. I made this project for myself mostly. It’s supposed to focus on my evolution as a person and I don’t know how well it does that. I think I’ve had great concepts for both of my projects so far but I’ve been lacking in execution.

Dami: What you hoping to achieve in the New Year?

Brandon Ryan: A lot, but the most important thing I want to do is improve as an artist, become a better producer, audio engineer, songwriter, rapper, and even singer. Once I’ve done that, I can work on all the ideas I have.

Dami: What’s the most memorable part of being an artist?

Brandon Ryan: Probably the experience of expressing yourself freely through music and sharing your ideas with other people who care about music the same way you do.

Listen to Brandon Ryan’s track “105 On The 85” now:

San Bernardino, California artist GetItRogers has shared a nocturnal visual for his song “Interlude, Pt. 1”. Here, an evocative, abstract instrumental centred around reversed samples and glitchy percussion sets the stage for GetItRogers’ heartfelt, introspective verses. His vocal performance is emotive, with wistful melodies that are sharply-crafted and memorable. Accompanied by a dark, textural visual that captures the song’s visceral feel, this is a release to re-visit again and again.

Watch the music video for “Interlude Pt. 1” here:

Sacramento’s Camden Malik has come through with a new banger called “Notre Dame”. With an immersive, warm sound, this track showcases Malik’s sharp ear for production and clever lyricism. Here, deep, booming 808s and bouncy percussion create a lively rhythm that pairs well with his dynamic flows, making for an exciting listening experience. Malik has been on a hot streak lately, releasing a series of strong projects including the excellent Primetime, and he appears to be by all means entering 2022 in top form.

Massachusetts musician Ish Akanour has shared a soulful new cut called “Novocaine”. A powerful, heartfelt melodic R&B and hip-hop track, “Novocaine” contains an atmospheric, emotive beat centred around wistful keys and grand guitars. Beneath, rich bass and crisp percussion lock in a solid foundation for Akanour’s dynamic, sharply-crafted vocals. He tackles poignant topics over the bittersweet instrumentation, making for a moving offering that draws the listener deeply into its atmosphere.

Listen to “Novocaine” now:

Vancouver artist Declan.Wav‘s “CADILLAC SPACESHIP” is an infectious, groovy track that attracted our interest immediately. A cut off his new album, the vibrant HEARTBREAK AT MIDNIGHT, “CADILLAC SPACESHIP” provides heavy replay value and warm, nocturnal vibes. With a smoky instrumental centred around relaxed guitars and bouncy, addictive percussion, the beat is lively and engaging. Moreover, Declan. Wav comes through with some confident yet laid-back verses that keeps the listener on their toes with dynamic flows. If you enjoyed this track please check out the remainder of his LP HEARTBREAK AT MIDNIGHT, the refreshing new full-length release from the young artist.

Pensylvannia musician Michael Wavves recent single “Motel”, featuring Alex Stanilla, finds the artist getting close and personal, offering a relatable track that puts the listener directly in his shoes. A reflective, contemplative single, “Motel” touches on loneliness and disillusionment, conveying melancholy through warm yet somber guitars and bittersweet vocals. Wavves also shows his diversity as a musician as he brings in a rock-inspired chorus followed by hip-hop verses over sturdy drums and rich bass.

Listen to “Motel” now:

By Damilola Grey

Trap Papi is an 18 year-old artist originally from Worcester, Massachusetts who spent most of his life in Orlando, Florida. His parents are from Bangladesh, and Trap Papi has expressed on various occasions how proud he is of his heritage. We talked about his introduction to hip hop, his most recent project and his upcoming release ULTRAVIOLET LOTUS which hits all streaming platforms on the 25th of December.

Dami: What was your first introduction to hip hop?

Trap Papi: I think my first introduction to hip-hop was Logic. More specifically, when he dropped the first Bobby Tarantino. I’d heard his name around and a couple songs before due to his partnership with Faze Clan, but listening to Flexicution for the first time with my friends really opened my eyes as to what I was really missing in that side of the music world. Flexicution was the first rap song I ever learned when it came to rapping with a fast flow and I feel like that really elevated my way to create flows that I feel like a lot of people my age can’t.

Dami: What made you want to start rapping?

Trap Papi: To be honest, I started making music and rapping in my freshman year of high school, so about 4 years ago. I started it as a joke, almost like a parody-satire thing. I wanted to make YouTube videos with characters that would interact with each other all played by me, and one of those characters I came up with was a stereotypical SoundCloud rapper, which is why I created the name Trap Papi. Definitely not the most ideal name if you wanna make a career out of this lol but the idea was that I would create this character and make songs like Lil Dicky or Lonely Island with the kind of persona as someone like Lil Pump or any other kid my age at the time trying to hop on the SoundCloud wave. I wrote a full song to put in my YouTube video and my friends told me to make a mixtape on SoundCloud. So I did that, and on December 25 th 2017, I dropped my first ever mixtape titled “CRACKED” which included 4 songs, with 3 of those being hype stereotypical songs and 1 of them being a slower and more personal track just to test the waters and see if people enjoyed it. I used my Apple earbuds and school laptop at the time, but people still decided to tune in. My whole school came to know about it and as I was scrolling through my Snapchat stories, I noticed so many people posting about my thing saying they didn’t expect it out of me but it was a pleasant surprise. Looking back, it was terrible lol, but at the same time that really made me think I should maybe try making another mixtape shortly after to see if this was something people could actually listen to from me.

Dami: What’s your creative process like?

Trap Papi: I feel like it’s a little unorthodox and not so normal but it works for me. I will just think of random phrases or things throughout the day whether something happens in my life or I just randomly think of it and I immediately just write it in my notes app and go on with my day. Whenever I have free time, I’m almost always looking through beats and finding what I think would work best for me and I go back to my notes app and use some of the phrases I write in them and bridge a song or something out of that. I then try to find visuals that have the same sort of atmosphere as the song I’m creating and use that to enhance the song while also working on a small promotional snippet I can post on my stories to get people a little more hyped for it using those same visuals. One thing I also do is find myself scrolling through Pinterest and creating mood boards with pictures that represent the vibe of the music, and when I’m in album mode, I try to do little things that kind of put me in the zone a little more like create wallpapers for my phone, change the LEDs in my room to whatever the album’s theme represents, and little things like that really get me in the mindset that I’m really in the world that I’m creating for my albums.

Dami: You dropped a project a few weeks ago. What were the vibes when creating it?

Trap Papi: It was a short little EP that is meant to be the ‘throwaways’ of my actual album dropping this Christmas titled “ULTRAVIOLET LOTUS”. The vibes are as I like to describe it, Yeezus-era Kanye West mixed with Blond-era Frank Ocean and some Baby Keem and 6LACK. It’s a very wide range of sounds but I feel like I’ve fused them together in a way that makes a lot of sense and will definitely open a lot of eyes in terms of my music. The EP was a small collection of loosies that didn’t make the album that I thought I could generate some hype for when the album actually does come out and I have a feeling it’s gonna shock some people.

Dami: If these are the throwaways, then what can we expect from the album itself?

Trap Papi: You should expect some songs that sound a lot fuller than the throwaways- songs that you can play on the aux when you’re with a group of friends, songs you can listen to while driving late at night, songs you can hear and play your own memories to in your head as you stare at the ceiling, and so on. The EP was just a collection of songs, but I made sure to make this album an EXPERIENCE.

Dami: What would you say is the most challenging part of being an
artist?

Trap Papi: I think one difficult thing about being an artist is not getting in your own head too much. It’s very easy in this field to be caught up in what other people say about your music or let any small negative thing set you back a lot. Keeping that mental toughness is very important because you need to understand that you can’t please everyone but it is possible to please yourself and that’s what I remind myself every day. Another thing is balance. I’m a full time college student now and it’s definitely a toss-up between what I should focus on more. Balance is still something I am struggling with but I’m learning as I go along.

Dami: What has been the most memorable part of being an artist?

Trap Papi: One of the most memorable parts for me was probably when I performed my first and only show so far in August of this year. Doing that for the first time really showed me that I was making some progress and really made me feel like I was finally showing myself what I could really do. Another thing is when I first dropped my merch and people were actually buying it way more than I expected. I think the most memorable moment for me was when I released my first album “Glass Garden” and my cousins got on a call with me all the way from Canada and we had our own little listening party and it was really the first time I created my own sound in a way, and seeing people react to that allowed me to go as hard as I did all throughout quarantine and even until now.

Dami: Any dream collabs?

Trap Papi: I got some underground ones and also some unrealistic ones for now. In the underground scene, I wanna eventually make songs with ZEYNI’s NGHTMRE, Augxst, and Choker. Those are some artists I’ve found and think it would sound amazing if I worked with them. As for dream collabs with established artists, I would say 6LACK, PartyNextDoor, J Cole, EDEN. I mean the list really goes on.

Listen to Trap Papi’s EP INFRARED ROSE 1.75: DAYS BEFORE LOTUS now: