This EP was released on March 29th this year. Phonte is definitely the best rapper from North Carolina in my opinion. Unfortunately, I’ve never actually written about him on this website. I really should try to big him up more, especially since he’s from my hometown of Durham. I actually think the two solo rap albums that he’s dropped are amazing. I honestly don’t know which one I like more. No News Is Good News was definitely one of the best albums I heard last year. That collaborative Soul record he did with Eric Roberson in 2016 was great too. Definitely check that shit out if you’re a fan. I’m definitely a big fan of Phonte. I think I’m going to like this project a lot. I’m not sure if I’ll think it’s as amazing as his full albums though. For some reason I just feel like 4 tracks won’t hit me as hard as a full album from Phonte will. He’s not really a singles artist in my opinion. I’ll be shocked if any of these songs end up being wack though. Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve ever actually heard a song from Phonte that I thought was bad. So yeah. I think this shit is gonna be dope.

1. Can We produced by Julia Lewis & TK Kayembe

This is a pretty slow paced song in which Phonte is singing. It’s smooth as hell. He sounds really good. Oh shit… Is this whole thing gonna be an R&B project? I guess I probably shouldn’t be writing about it then… Fuck it; I’ll do it anyway. Anyway, I really like the production on this track, and Phonte’s singing is smooth as fuck. I especially love how the production gets a little darker for the final verse. This shit is honestly amazing. I love this song. The electric guitar towards the end of the song sounds really great. Wow. I’m honestly a little surprised by how good this is. This shit is dope af. I love it.

2. Beverly Hills featuring Devin Morrison produced by Like, Swarvy & Devin Morrison

Oh fucking shit. This production is amazing. It’s cool to see another placement from Swarvy. I loved his work on that Maxo EP, and a friend of mine recommended his latest album, which was really good. Damn. I might actually like this song even more than the previous one. It’s so fucking smooth. He sang his ass off on the first verse, and the hook is catchy as hell. I’m not familiar with this Devin Morrison guy, but he did a great job with the second verse. Man, I live for this shit. This song is fantastic. It ends a little abruptly, but other than that I have no issues with it. This shit is dope af.

3. Ego produced by Phonte

Man, the fucking proDUCTion on this project is absolutely stellar, man. This track feels more like an interlude than a full song though. There are some additional vocals from Lalah Hathaway & Kristi Ae, which are really nice. The song is less than two minutes. I definitely enjoyed it, but I feel like it could’ve been a little more fleshed out. I like it a lot as it is though. This shit is really dope.

4. Heard This One Before featuring KAYTRANADA & BOSCO produced by KAYTRANADA

I’m not familiar with BOSCO. She sounded pretty good singing on the first verse though. I love the production from KAYTRANADA too. The hook is catchy as hell. Oh, nice. Phonte is rapping on the second verse. That was dope as hell. I feel like it could’ve used one more verse, but it’s still a really good track. That little verse he spit for the outro was cool. This is really great. It’s not my favorite track, but I like it more than the previous one. This shit is dope af.

This EP is fantastic. There’s not a single track that I dislike. It’s actually better than I was expecting it to be. I’m honestly not even disappointed that he was singing most of the time because he did it really well. All of these songs are really good. I don’t even know what to say about it because I honestly don’t have any problems with it. The production was fantastic, and Phonte sang his ass off. Some more rapping would be cool, but I’m satisfied with what he gave us. This shit is dope af.

Favorite Song: Can We
Least Favorite Song: Ego

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