New York, NY (Top40 Charts) 2014 seems to have been a banner year for hip-hop and R&B new releases. Every week throughout the past 12 months my desk has been cluttered with press kits bulging with CD jewel cases and my email inbox has been blowing up with EPKs (that's electronic press kits for those of you not in "the business") and pleas to check out a artist's music. What a year what a year...
So as the year winds down I always like to end it with a review about some artist who hasn't quite made it to "the big time!" yet, but with some hard work and some sage advice (and that's where I come into the picture) they just may be the proverbial "contenders". This year it was hard to choose from the multitude but I believe I've finally thinned the herd sufficiently enough to make my choice. For 2014 I've chosen Kins Featuring Murda Mook and their single "Streetz" to focus on.
"Streetz" is held together by strong beats, a quirky sample (in this case it's world champ Floyd Mayweather) outstanding performances from a pair of dueling MCs (provided respectively by newcomer Kins and Murda Mook an already known name in the rap game). The writing on "Streetz" is mostly solid from beginning to end although a bit predictable (I didn't really hear anything I'd say broke new ground by experimentally mashing up existing influences or fusing new ideas in unexpected ways). Still, at the end of the day I wouldn't hesitate in saying that Kins and her featured guest Murda Mook show some chiseled muscle when it comes to working the microphone, so it's all G2G to me.
You can hear a "Hood" version (which has lots of explicit lyrics) or an edited mix (minus the explicit lyrics but still abundant with X-rated imagery and double entendres like how a certain sex act is enhanced when given sloppily for example) of the song over at the Kin's ReverbNation page. Even if singles still don't make my list of the Top Ten releases (albums only on that list) I'd want to have with me if I was stranded on a desert island she has earned the distinction of being an up and coming artist I'd suggest keeping an eye out for in 2015.
Over and out to one and all for this old year and happy new year to you and yours in the year to come. Blessings, blunts and blast it loud in 2015 homies!
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