Still I Rise – Produced
by Micall Parknsun featuring WhoDat
By
AnyWay Tha God
These two recent singles from AnyWay Tha God have been out
since October so, I’m a little late bringing these to you. Now, I first heard
AnyWay Tha God when I reviewed the Remix project he did with Daniel Niles for
his album Allow God To Interject, way back in 2021. Since that time, he has had
a string of releases, most of which have been released through the G.A.W.D.S
& L.A.W.D.S imprint.
Sadly, for this review I have not had the time to detail
AnyWay The God's background and perhaps that is something for another day? But
what I have for you today are two singles, Mind Melt which features
production from Daniel Niles and Still I Rise which features WhoDat with
production from the legendary Micall Parknsun.
So, I won’t keep you waiting here but get straight into the
music.
Mind Melt has this heavy head nod beat alongside some
bass and keys which all combine to merge with and twist your mind into looking
at reality with a slightly different viewpoint. This fits perfectly with AnyWay
Tha Gods lyrics which grab hold of your awareness and literally pull apart your
current understanding of reality, opening you up to everything you thought you
knew but, in a true assault on the senses. At times you might struggle to keep
focused on what he is injecting into your mind but, perhaps that is the deal
here? Hitting you with all this information in a way that you end up taking on
in a more unconscious way. Just think about it, but not too much…
Still I Rise is produced by Micall Parknsun and
features WhoDat alongside AnyWay Tha God, and was inspired by the poem by Maya
Angelou. Parky brings a wicked mix of drum beat and keys that give this one a
banging vibe that also serves to raise your adrenaline levels. As the beat
fills your ears AnyWay and WhoDat bring vocals with a true sense of purpose; a
purpose that instils strength and feeling in you. This one speaks on having
that strength in the face of adversity and to keep walking forward when life seems
to try to knock you down at every turn. There is also a spiritual side to this
that speaks on drawing energy and inner strength from a higher power too…
What we have here are two tracks that, on the face of it,
are almost opposites but, when you go beyond face value you see that they
compliment each other. Mind Melt has this stance that speaks on society and the
world we live in and how it all can turn your mind inside out but, then comes
Still I Rise which gives you the integrity, focus and strength to find a way to
keep going as you walk the journey of life.
Each very powerful in their own right, these tracks speak on
a different level, one that you need to be open to, to really feel. Production
from Daniel Miles and Micall Parknsun are just spot on, really capturing the
essence of the message in each track. AnyWay Tha God brings us intelligent
lyrics that are delivered with strength and conviction. He also shows that his
flows can switch no matter the subject matter and what kind of deliver it calls
for to reach the listener. The appearance of WhoDat also totally compliments the
track and fits perfectly with the message alongside AnyWay Tha God.
These are two solid tracks from AnyWay Tha God, and I would
recommend that you check out these and the rest of what he has to offer, You’ll
not be disappointed.
Both tracks are out there now.
My thanks to AnyWay Tha God for putting these my way.
I’ll be seeing you.
Steve.
LINKS
One link for the singles and all things AnyWay THa God:
I first featured King Dion back in July this year with the
Ed Koch EP alongside the Cut Beetlez. Now that EP went down pretty well so I’m
interested to hear what the Atlanta rapper has for us on this follow-up single,
Shifty which is produced by 3410 Sounds.
So, lets just get straight into it…
Shifty has this more modern sounding rap vibe from 3410
Sounds. The beat has this heavy, almost brooding sound to it which is broken up
by the sharper sound of the programmed drums. This gives the whole track this
vibe that has you almost on edge throughout. King Dion gives us solid flow that
allows you to hear exactly what he is saying, which is always an advantage. The
more you listen to this one, the more you get the feeling that this has an
autobiographical feel to it. There is this feeling that King Dion is giving us
a brief glimpse into life on the streets of Atlanta through the eyes of someone
living it. You also feel that this is a bit of a statement, that King Dion is
opening our eyes to where he is from and also where he is at.
Shifty is the kind of track that our friends across the pond
will associate with a bit more than us here in the UK but, that is not to say
that there are not some parallels between the two. The vibe of the track is
sure to hit all the right notes for many and it is one of those that you should
check out for yourself, just to see what notes it hits with you.
King Dion is definitely one of the upcoming rap artists to
watch from the US. He also does not just restrict himself to the vocals but
also dabbles in production and DJing too. For me though one of the things that
stands out with King Dion is that his rap style has that flow that allows you
to hear every rhyme, which is priceless, especially if you like to really get
into what someone is putting across in their art.
Shifty is out on all the usual streaming platforms now.
My thanks to King Dion for dropping this one my way.
Somewhere back in the mists of time, my good friend and DJ /
Producer / Emcee and all-round good egg Pandamonium put out an offer to fully
produce an album, EP or whatever for a proper bargain price, and one of the
projects that grew from that was a collaboration with upcoming rapper / Singer
/ Songwriter and drummer from Nottingham UK, Danny Riggs.
That collaboration is now available for everyone to check
out and is titled Times Change. Now, aside from being fully produced by
Pandamonium, it features some pretty heavy hitters as well including Louis
Cypher and Zar! Plus, there is a posse style cut that features a host of emcees
in the form of Louis Cypher, Aquatic Ape, C Hayez, Tippyvshummanity, Odox, Cali
Green and the legend that is Cappo. With a line-up like that, it is hard to
write anymore, so I’m just gonna get into it…
Times Change clocks in at a sneeze under forty minutes long
across ten tracks and kicks off with Intro_spective, which has
Pandamonium's trademark jazzy vibe but, with a more laid-back sound of horns, guitar,
and cymbals. The focus of this intro is an invitation for all of us to look
within to make the greatest changes. Keeping our focus on what is outside of us
and on what others are doing will never be transformative, only a quick fix…
With that thought firmly rooted into our awareness, the
album in earnest with Loading In, keeping it laid back here, there is
that nice little addition of that 80’s digital computer loading sound, the
drumbeat is proper Hip Hop here and backed by bass, kays and horns, which keeps
that jazz-hop vibe going. Here we find Danny bringing us the lowdown on who he
is and the things that inspire him to do what he does behind the Mic. It is
refreshing to get that insight because, with Danny being one of the younger generation
of rappers out there, it gives us this deep look at what drives him and that
there is this desire within him to see people inviting love into their lives to
bring more of it into the world. From that personal note, its time to get more
head nod with No Breaks. Pandamonium gives us a nice beat and handclaps
to get out heads moving and there are more samples thrown in with quick turns
of pace that keep us on our toes. Here we find Danny taking us through some of
those moments in life where we feel we just can’t catch a break. He delivers
this with some great comedic lines that will have you grinning for sure. You
can keep that grin on your face as Playing Games opens with that
Nintendo Wii electronic little tune, as a father and son get ready to play on
the console. Panda then spins that tune with a nice little head nod beat to
give Danny the perfect background to reminisce on his younger days, name
dropping a plethora of video games, TV shows and more from the 2000’s. I bet us
older heads will recognise most of these as we watched em with our kids too.
Real Business takes us back to that laid-back jazzy
vibe of piano and other keys over another nice drumbeat getting us almost
swaying back and forth. Danny, drawing on his personal experience, takes us on
a trip that is all about doing what you love and constantly aiming to reach
your goals. It’s a long journey where some will doubt you and criticize you
but, use that energy to fuel your passion for what you do and keep walking
forward no matter what. It’s now time for a brief Technical Interlude with
serves to introduce what’s about to happen in the second part of the album.
Very tongue-in-cheek this one and Panda’s beat has this very lift or elevator
music about it but, before you know it, we’re all good and its time to move on
to Haters which see’s Louis Cypher making his first appearance. This one
turns up the energy levels more than a few notches with a cracking sound that
mixes horns, keys and more with a nice infectious beat. This one has the air of
battle rap about it as Danny and Louis give us a solid display of wordplay,
spinning line after line that will make anyone think twice about stepping up on
them…
Almost Blind sees Zar! Step up alongside Danny, with
Panda providing a more chilled beat with this electronic sample that gives this
one a nerve tweaking edge but, not in bad way, as it just anchors your focus on
the words. As you listen to this one it really has a message that echoes the
introduction, where its all about having faith in yourself, never giving up,
and letting love guide you to a better place. With those sentiments still
ringing in your ears, the penultimate track here seems to show what is possible
if you don’t give up but, aim for your goals. Legacy is a track that
weighs in at nearly ten minutes in length and sees Danny joined by Louis
Cypher, Aquatic Ape, C Hayez, Tippyvshummanity, Odox, Cali Green and Cappo.
Panda drops a deep funky vibe on this one with deep beat, bass and this funked
out guitar that really gets you moving. Less of a hardcore posse cut that you
might expect, this one is more a collective of emcees speaking on just what it
means to them to leave a legacy behind them. The core thing here is not leaving
money or material things but, leaving a legacy of words that have true meaning;
creating something that will speak to people for years to come, and the length
seems to float by as you listen intently. This is a deep and thought-provoking
track that you can’t help but take something from. The album ends with The
Best Is Yet To Come Outro which sees Panda on form with a nice head nod
little track with bass, guitars and cuts, rounding off the album and suggesting
to all that this is just the beginning of the journey for Danny Riggs and the
best, well that’s to come and we’ll just have to wait and see what that brings…
Overall, what can I say about this one? Well, one thing I
can say is that it was a pleasure to wrote to, as the sound and lyrics just
made the listening and writing something that flowed with ease; and I love it
when that happens because it makes my job easier.
As this was my introduction to Danny Riggs, I was pleasantly
surprised to hear someone who has a passion and confidence in his craft. He has
some great wordplay and turns of flow while delivering everything with an air
that says he is more than able to make a name for himself on the UK scene, and
there is no reason to believe that he will not still be here doing his thing
for years to come. It will be interesting to watch how he progresses and
matures as his journey continues. He is definitely one to watch.
It was also interesting to see how the album had this
distinct feel of two halves, separated by this little comedic ditty. The first
half showed what Danny can do flying solo, while the second half gave him the
chance to drop verses alongside some big name features too. It really showed
that he has the capability to hold his own, regardless of if he does it solo or
alongside other artists.
He did a great job picking Pandamonium to work with on this
project as it does seem to show that he fits really well with Panda’s
production style. Each beat panda provided worked so well with the essence of
what Danny was going for. Mixing up the styles and the pace gave Danny some
good platforms to show how he too can mix things up. Now, I didn’t mention much
about the cuts in the write-up for each track, and Panda does not drop a lot of
them but, when he does, they are used in just the right places and form to
bring that full on Hip Hop vibe to proceedings.
The features artists on the second half of the album all fit
so well into the vibe of what Danny is giving us here. He gives us names that
we know very well, alongside some that we might not know so well but, it all
works perfectly and adds that icing to the cake.
All-in-All, Times Change is an impressive release by
one of the UK’s up and coming rap artists who delivers the kind of message that
says fairly and squarely, I’m here and I’m one to watch. Plus, as us old heads
know, times do change and here we have someone who looks to fit so well within
the UK Hip Hop scene, drawing on the essence of that real Hip Hop sound.
