Tag: 13°

13° – “Ghetto Hipster” review

Brand new sophomore effort from Chicago, Illinois rapper 13°. Emerging only a few years ago off his first couple mixtapes Urban Junkie & Metropolitan respectively, he would go on to follow both of those up with Uptown Dropout as well as Clique City & it’s sequel. His debut EP Cyber Sundayz caught the attention of Island Records & they helped introduce him to a wider audience with the positively received full-length studio debut Black Fridayz, now declaring himself to be the Ghetto Hipster nearly 2 months since CM Punk became a 9-time WWE world champion.

“A Gloomy Morning” hops over a synth-driven boom bap beat produced by longtime collaborator Gyant to kick things off talking about being the king of his city & his life soarin’ past him whereas “Lordz Never Worry” gives off some Graduation vibes declaring himself to be a superstar. “White Sox Capz” psychedelically represents his hometown advising to get the fuck out his face unless one’s looking for him to put them to shame while the cloudily poppy “Pistolet” flexes of dating every model & comparing the head to blowing the smoke off a fired pistol.

We have some crazy sampling techniques being pulled off on “Membership” talking about not needing a patch because he’s already a gold member leading into “Ridiculouz” maintains the euphoria confessing he kinda digs people detracting him for being a golden ticket. “Poetry Jamz” stood out to me for it’s unignorable throwback to when The Neptunes dominated the airwaves in the early 2000s just before the poppy yet cloudy “Juene O.G.” poses the question of whether his not his name will be brought up in discussions a century from now.

“Northside Synonymz” begins the 2nd half likening life to another public assembly with the background vocals sticking out the most to me regarding the instrumental while the cloud rap/pop rap-infused 2nd single “Dwntwn Luv” intoxicatingly talks about trying to fuck a bouncer. “Lyricz” made for a solidly cloudy pop rap lead single making a cold reference to the late Juice WRLD at the end of the hook hoping this woman can heal his heart while the Ye-inspired “Brand New” talks about life giving him body shots.

Trippie Redd makes Ghetto Hipster’s sole guest appearance during the penultimate single “Emotionlezz” dedicating itself to all the weirdos & having apathetic pulling from future bass thoughts while the 3rd single “Hipster Encore” talks about his love of skinny Vogue models who do coke. “Microphone Fein” ironically lager includes a bar referring to 17-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE United States Champion & 4-time WWE tag team champion John Cena while “Journalistic” atmospherically concludes the album clapping back at the way fraudulent blogs be acting.

Black Fridayz was a solid farewell to the Clique City sounds 13° blew up off of & to begin this new chapter of his career, his 2nd major label offering initially stemming from a highlight off his debut last fall dethrones it’s predecessor & the Clique City mixtape series for the bragging rights of becoming his finest collection of material so far. The production’s significantly cloudier than the debut & he’s having more fun with his music taking inspiration from the likes of Nas, Westside Gunn, the late Capital STEEZ & A$AP Rocky.

Score: 4/5

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13° – “Black Fridayz” review

Chicago, Illinois rapper 13° making his full-length studio debut. Starting out a couple years ago off his first couple mixtapes Urban Junkie & Metropolitan respectively, he would go on to follow both of those up with Uptown Dropout as well as Clique City & it’s sequel. His debut EP Cyber Sundayz a little over a couple months ago caught the attention of Island Records, who recently signed the Chi-Town up-&-comer to make a wider exposure on Black Fridayz.

“Intercontinental” was a boisterous trap intro produced by longtime collaborator Gyant advising that anyone who doesn’t give a fuck about up should from hereon out whereas “Rooftopz” hooks up some synthesizers to talk about the love this woman is giving him makes him feel right at home. The title track lets everyone in on exactly how chaotic his mind can be just before “Fake Killa” talks about nobody saving him if he goes the wrong way.

Pop rap, trap & future bass all collide during the single “Champain” feeling like a king when he steps in the room while “Lil Mama” encourages the apple of his eye to put on the dress he got her & get geeked. “Chiraq Child” featuring lil2posh finds the pair coming together to talk about growing up in the Windy City leading into the standout “Palace” produced by BNYX of Working on Dying flexing his current status.

“Spike Snapback” starts the final leg of Black Fridayz by keeping a firm grip on the gas pedal while “I’m Turnt” psychedelically talks about his life being lit these days. “Exotic Strippaz” throws it back to the Clique City era while “Ghetto Hipster” talks about being fashionable & hood at the same time. The closer “Drive Safe” finishes 13’s debut pleading to stop telling him to be patient when he’s losing patience.

Allegedly his final hip hop project, it’s hard for me to say what’s next for 13° but what I can tell you is that Black Fridayz maintains the trap/pop rap fusions that made Clique City 2 so special & turns it up to 11 now that he’s got Island Records supporting him. The production feels modern & nostalgic at the same time, taking up the half hour of his major label debut to reach a wider crowd using distinctive flows.

Score: 3.5/5

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