The must-hear rap song of the day
Dallas rapper Soulzay and Houston rapper Slim Guerilla are Southern hip-hop revivalists. Soulzay seems to drop a UGK-inspired track every few weeks, and Slim Guerilla’s past few mixtapes have their genesis in a blown-out version of 1990s Texan rap. So it’s no surprise that their latest collaboration uses a remix of Kid Frost’s 1995 G-funk classic “East Side Rendezvous” as the basis for its production. Over this smooth, guitar-infused beat, Soulzay and Slim Guerilla deliver self-motivated lines in their respective flows. Soulzay sounds a bit like Paul Wall, but more laid back. He seems to rap more for tone than content, peppering his lines with comforting little details. Slim Guerilla is more active, starting his section with, “SG Bruce Lee/Watch me make this track flip.” Guerilla’s lines are head-nodders made for immediate consumption; he jokes about being a Houston Rocket chilling with the Dallas Mavericks and mocks people who ask him where his bars are. It’s rap revivalism delivered with grace.
With artists releasing songs at a fast and furious pace, it’s difficult for the average hip-hop head to keep track of it all—no matter how tapped in they are. That’s why we created The Ones, a daily post to highlight the song you need to hear.
Check out previous Ones, and listen to new rap from Soulzay and Slim Guerilla and more on our Spotify playlist.
