Asset.Radio is a weekly playlist of new hip-hop releases curated by OGM contributor Aidan C Werder (@aidantheasset). Listen on Spotify and see last week’s Asset.Radio.22.11.2 here.
Tune in weekly for a freshly curated batch of 15 (ish) new releases from the week, or throw on shuffle for a random sampling of new music from some of the most original and compelling artists in hip hop.
The goal of Asset.Radio is to paint a picture of what the cutting edge looks like, answering questions like: Which artists are bringing something new to the table? What are the cool kids listening to? And who is an asset to the culture?
And keep in mind, all in the humble opinion of Aidan the Asset
(November 2022, Week 3) Kodak Black dropped a pretty powerful new single this week called “Falling Over” that serves as both a touching tribute to XXXTentacion with its opening line “Come alive Jahseh, because I need an angel” and an impressively eloquent commentary on the troubling state of hip hop when he admits “I didn’t know you could die like this. You could die rich and famous.” Despite his harsh exterior Kodak continues to pull out surprisingly tender moment like this, reminiscent of earlier hits like “Testimony” that, when you are open to seeing them, really showcase the depth and unassuming profoundness of one of the most important voices of our generation as he speaks to the all-too-common occurrence of artists (and particularly rappers) dying before their time.
On that note, Rest In Peace to all the artists who have lost their lives this year, from Takeoff to Edot Baby to Young Slo-be and far too many more. The playlist’s cover this week is bittersweet to say the least. Although it should be an exciting moment for three young rising stars from New York City to be featured in Drake’s high profile campaign, it features Sugarhill DDot and DD Osama, two 15 year old artists who rose to fame after losing their 14 year-old brother Notti to violencein the streets of NY, as well as a 17 year-old Edot Baby whose young life came to a tragic and premature end after an apparent suicide just weeks ago. Rest in Peace Edot.
As the hip hop industry continues to grieve the loss of Takeoff, his defacto sister-in-law Cardi B took to social media this week to draw attention to “Last Memory” off his first and only solo project from 2018, The Last Rocket. While the tragic irony behind the song’s title isn’t lost, Cardi was absolutely right in that the slept-on banger showcases the talent and unique charisma of Takeoff at his best.
Detroit OG Peezy claims the top spot this week with the remix of his sneaky song-of-the-year contender “2 Million Up.” Originally released in August on his latest project, Only Built 4 Diamond Link, the Detroit veteran doubled back on his runaway hit this week with a talent-packed remix featuring trap legend (and rhyming moniker) Jeezy, New Orleans’ rising star Rob49, and one of Florida’s hottest new artists, Real Boston Richey – who recently signed with Future on account of his captivating sound built around his affinity for Detroit-type beats.
Remaining in Detroit, hometown hero G.T. dropped what may be his best project yet last week with Money Counter Music Vol 2: Born In It – the latest showcase of his cool, calm and collected Motor City-bred sound that couldn’t be better paired with features from Curren$y, Larry June, and of course from Detroit’s waviest, Babyface Ray on “Motion Gang / Wavy Gang.”
Babyface Ray had his own moment this week with “Spend It,” yet another single as he appears to be gearing up to follow up his chart-topping debut as its one year anniversary approaches with a new album titled Mob. “Spend It” is an uncharacteristically gentle tune for the normally gritty and lovably irreverent Face, gliding as usual on his verse and joined by a sweet melodic chorus from Nija and a (noticably) light sprinkling of Blxst’s iconic vocal.
Rich Homie Quan is serious about his comeback. After shedding some light on his legendary rise and rather tumultuous experiences in the music industry in a rare interview with No Jumper last week, Quan followed his recent release with 7 new song on Family & Mula Reloaded, including “Spin” where he speaks directly to the doubters on the interlude when he says “I know n****s thought it was over for me. I woulda thought that too… Hot as you was to just go ghost”
Also from the mitten (i.e. Michigan for the non-midwesterners), the prince himself Babytron dropped his new project Bin Reaper 3: Old Testament just in time for Halloween. The album continues to garner streams and a pretty unexpected amount of critical acclaim given his irreverent, acquired-taste style, even earning an almost unheard of “Strong 7” from the notoriously critical Anthony Fantano.
Slaughter Gang’s new artist 21 Lil Harold has been making the most of his excellent positioning in the game under 21 Savage since dropping his Larry project this summer. As he gears up for a new project early in 2023, his new single “Damn” with G Herbo may be his best yet – showcasing his own flavor of understated gangster rap as he glides over calm production and reflects on the serious consequences of the streets.
From NYC, after rising to the forefront of Bronx Drill alongside close compatriots B-Lovee and Kay Flock, Dougie B finally dropped his first official solo project since signing a major label deal with Republic. The project features some his popular singles from throughout year including “I’m Back,” “Uzi” and “Forever On That” as well as some notable, if not unexpected features from Philly’s 2Rare, Cordae, and probably the most unlikely 5-way collab with rising new wave stars midwxst, Ka$hdami, yvngxchris, and Luisss. Personally, I was most excited to see Dougie tap in with one of NY’s most influential and underappreciated, Shawny Binladen on “No Discussion” – who despite being one of the city’s most unique and prolific new artists remains highly underrated and under utilized.
Rising out of Jacksonville, Florida, BabyK Osama is the latest artist with a… middle eastern-themed moniker making waves (see: Shawny Binladen, Taleban Dooda, etc.) Having already tapped in with many of Florida’s hottest new names on his prophetically titled Before I Break Through, including OMB Peezy, Yungeen Ace, Jdot Breezy, Goldenboy Countup and GMK, BabyK is well positioned for success. His new single “No Attempts” with ATL’s Anti Da Menace is a great example of his gritty delivery and raspy flow, as well as the rising popularity Detroit-type beats amongst Florida’s rising tide of street rappers.
The West Coast has several entires on the list this week. To start, once again Rest In Peace to Stockton, CA’s Young Slo-be. This week Thizzler posthumously released a new music video for one of the standout tracks from his last album, with the tragically ironic title “Don’t Kome To my Funeral.” Despite the unshakeable irony, the single has Slo-be’s signature grittiness, breaathy flow, and iconic ad libs on full display – and unfortunately may be the last music video we ever see from the young west coast legend in the making. Long live Young Slo-be.
From Sacremento, DB.Boutabag continues to make a case to be one of the West’s strongest newcomers with his charismatic, punchy flow and irreverent rap bars (which he prefers to call “shit talking”). Like a true player, he sounds confident and in no rush on his new single “Take My Time.”
LA’s HeemBeezy is one of the best examples on the west coast of the new style of eerie, raw gangster rap loosely reminiscent of the raspy, understated flows popular amongst Florida’s rising wave of artists tapping in with the dark Detroit-style sound. With songs like “Face No Book” and “Floccer” his unique vocal and unmistakable LA accent come together with dark, asymmetrical production to create hugely compelling, decidedly unorthodox bangers that resonating online. In addition to dropping his new single “Lost It All” this week, he was surprisingly spotted performing at Alabama Barker’s controversial 17th birthday party alongside NoCap and Nardo Wick – a sure sign that his star is on the rise amongst the cool kids.
And lastly, Lil Maru continues to be a shining star amongst the new wave of artists making noise out of San Diego. This week he dropped his first official project From Me 2 You, putting his catchy, affected-vocal melodic style on full display. It included popular tracks like “Get Me On” and new songs like “Mr. Steal My Swag,” as well features from notable west coast figures including Bino Rideaux, Cypress Moreno and R3 Da Chilliman.
And last but not least, the “new wave.” The talented artist-producer Sig.Carlito (aka 16yrold) has been suspiciouslty quiet in recent times, but this week popped out to drop a new project pskyos. As always, the project features top notch production presumably all produced by Sig himself – just one example being the intense beat switch on through “i can die.”
Coming out of absolutely nowhere in recent weeks is Exøtix. While you may not be familiar with the name, you’ve almost certainly seen one of the thousands of videos across social media made using the hugely catchy audio from his breakout song “Ton1ght.” The song combines Exøtix’s low-register melodic flow with an incredibly captivating, eerie beat (prod by Psykidd) and a haunting female vocal to create a dynamic, multi-layered track that really hits on a lot of levels. This one is no regular Tik Tok song. Exøtix is definitely one to keep an eye on.
And finally, two rising new wave artists from ATL continue to make their mark. Although originally from Virginia, Caal Vo has been steadily bubbling beneath the surface of ATL’s underground wave with well produced, deceptively simple songs like “Astrology.”
And following up on his early hits “Yesterday” and “Max,” 4Tunat is back with another new single “Dreams” – once again making using of his confident, melodic new wave flow and top notch production. There was also a video that made the rounds this week of 4Tunat absolutely rocking a show as an opening act, with the crowd even breaking out chants for an encore.
And that’s it. Another week of Asset.Radio and another installment of what the cool kids are listening to.
Listen to Asset.Radio.22.11.3 on Spotify below
