Stumbled On: Icey Mike

At this point of Gucci Mane's career and the hundreds (probably thousands) of songs he's released in the past decade, there's probably enough material from his slang and colorful punch lines to create a dialect and subculture. His first single, "So Icey", has grown into an adjective for all things fresh, at least in Baltimore. Got some exclusives shoes? "Them bitches icey." Heard a new beat that's fire? "Damn, that beat icey." If you're icey, you're doing something right.

A rapper that I just found out about from a friend took that into consideration when naming himself; Baltimore's Icey Mike is an offspring of Gucci Mane's playful and boastful vocal aesthetic, and at times, a refreshing rewind back to the LimeWire days of the internet where finding random lo-fi offerings from rappers who tagged their music with phrases associated with popular artists was a regular occurrence. That's not a diss, though; it's more of a thank you. The bulk of Icey Mike's In The Snow tape is like a hybrid of Chicken Talk-era Gucci Mane and the early 90's horror core that Three 6 Mafia was releasing. His random metaphors about how high he gets is the Guwop side while the choppy flow over dirty, muffled production can be attributed to early Lord Infamous and Koopsta Knicca -- all of whom were huge influences on Baltimore culture in the late 90's to the mid 2000's.

In The Snow doesn't escape too many rap conventions, as most of the tracks detail his preferred ways of getting high, women and steering clear of flutes (lames) but it's the playfulness in his delivery that makes things interesting. He tries his hand at singing on "Bent Behind Tent" where him being off-key is actually a plus. On "6 AM," he wakes up, gets fucked up and heads to the studio. And although getting into lyrical pockets doesn't  come consistently, he occasionally finds zones. On "Icey Avalanche", he flows: "You know I' bent behind tint, smelling like a pound of kush and Reggie Bush is your scent/ I'm 'bout to be major, Bitch I'm balling just like I'm Peja/ Stojakovic, I gotta get rich so I can ball on my haters."

With a Twitter account that hasn't been updated since the tape dropped on October 21st and a private Instagram profile, it's unclear on what Icey Mike has to come but his contribution to what feels like a sub genre of Gucci-esque raps is proper music to vibe to. Stream In The Snow below: 

Icey Mike drops his first mixtape "In The Snow" and it doesn't disappoint. Get your icey mike's now before they're sold out

Stumbled On: Penelope Dolla$

Situated 40 miles south of Cleveland, and just a couple hours drive east of Columbus, recognition sometimes escapes the city of Akron, Ohio. Star NBA players Lebron James and Steph Curry were both born in Akron, though Cleveland gets the bragging rights since it houses the team. While Columbus birthed country juggernaut Rascal Flatts, as well as underground legends Copywrite and Camu Tao, Akron perhaps holds the trump card for being the site where The Black Keys formed.

Born in Akron, Penelope Dolla$ is part of a rising generation of artists in the region. Though she moved to Columbus when she was three-years-old, she returned nines year later, where she has lived ever since. Equally adept singing and rapping, Penelope draws inspirations from hip-hop heavyweights of the 90's like Wu-Tang Clan and Digable Planets, while charting paths set by some of the genre's recently revered idols such as Kanye West and Cleveland native Kid Cudi.

While Penelope credits Columbus as the place that taught her “how to fight back and not be afraid of anyone,” and that admittedly, “I did a lot of wild shit in Columbus,” she learned to be comfortable being a self-described oddball. While southern trap rap dominated most of her friends' playlists in middle school, she favored bands that fused multiple genres. “I was always attracted to music by The Gorillaz, Coldplay and Gym Class heroes,” she reveals, “I never really shared that with my friends.”

Encouraged by a family of musicians – her mother rapped, while her dad, grandparents and aunts sang – she formed her own rap duo with schoolmate Wavy, called Planet Rech. Though the songs may never see the light of day, including her first song dedicated to a high school crush, she felt an endearing sense of pride. The recording process was “liberating because I waited three years to do so.” With this newfound confidence, she had plans to make her mark on hip-hop with Wavy by her side. 

In late 2011, the two had a falling out. “We ended up getting into a petty argument,” Penelope recalls, due to stark differences: while Penelope had intentions of pursuing a music career, Wavy had her eyes set on college. 

Suddenly a solo artist, she settled on the name “Penelope Dolla$,” a combination of her love for classic names and imagery, with her own entrepreneurial spirit. On Y2K, her second solo project, she sings raps her signature bravado over classic instrumentals from Shyne, Busta Rhymes, Bun B and Ashanti. 

1. RIG (Odd Kidd, King Means, BMims) [Prod. Miami Crosier] 2. Fela Kuti (Vello, King Means)[Prod. King Means] 3. BLAK Freestyle (Penelope Dolla$) [Prod. BMims] 4. Elevated (Crisis, Vello, Odd Kidd) [Prod. King Means] 5. Body Bags (King Means, Vello, BMims)[Prod. BMims] 6. Tamara (King Means, Penelope Dolla$)[Prod. King Means] 7. Master P (BMims, Vello)[Prod. King Means] BLAK KLAN 2015!!!!

With aspirations of breaking into the markets in Atlanta and Los Angeles, winning a Grammy and becoming an entrepreneur, she is not content on resting on her laurels. Akron, she stresses, is a city full of “hidden treasures that are about to be revealed.” With at least three projects on the way, including a second compilation with her Blak Klan collective, a collaboration with Cleveland's St. Clair and her own solo album, she is determined to lead the wave of breakout artists in the Midwest.

Follow Penelope Dolla$ on SoundCloud & Twitter

Stumbled On: U-ZET

While most eleventh graders were spending their time with friends, studying for exams, or painstakingly deciding their next step after high school, U-ZET poured hours into crafting house music on his laptop. Hailing from the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa, U-ZET began publishing his tracks in mid-2014, primarily through South African-based music-sharing platform KasiMP3. Though he was raised on primarily gospel music, he grew an affinity for electronic music after his brother introduced him to both local and international stars such as Deep Xcape and Black Coffee.

After discovering he could make his own tracks using a barebones laptop armed with FL Studio, U-ZET recruited two friends from school to form United Sounds. Specializing in deep house, tribal and gqom -- an aggressive, chant-based variation of house music originating in the city of Durban, South Africa – the trio released over two dozen loose songs, including a gqom edit of “B*tch Don't Kill My Vibe,” that gave U-ZET an ample platform to release his own solo works in rapid-fire succession.

Durban, South African producers U-ZET and Rhythm-C join forces for the “Music Book EP.” The project is the result of a collaboration that came to fruition in just under two weeks, which each track being described as a “soul groover,” their own brand of deep house. Still attending high school, U-ZET and Rhythm-C look forward to collaborating on future projects. If that’s not enough, U-ZET is slated to release his own solo EP later this summer, God willing!

The hustle didn't go unnoticed; London-based electronic label SHANGAANBANG recently featured the relentless gqom song “Abaphansi” as part of their inaugural TOWNSHIPTECH series, alongside compatriots DJ Mtu and the Cruel Boyz.

Most recently, U-ZET collaborated with schoolmate Rhythm-C for the Music Book EP,  six tracks of bright samples, mellow synths and his trademark crisp percussion, which premiered through Electric Llama. He plans to release his forthcoming EP, “I AM” later this summer. While producing remains a passion, he's not quite sure where he's headed. Over Facebook Chat, he revealed “I want to be a software developer,” but “still carry on producing on the side, God willingly.”

U-zet: http://kasimp3.co.za/music.php?u=U1ZET TOWNSHIPTECH is a project of @SHANGAANBANG The first batch of tracks showcase a sound dubbed 'Gqom'. Hailing from Durban, SA, the genre is characterized by tough, militant percussion, droning pads and maniacal vocal sampling. #001 gives just a brief glimpse into an exciting, emerging scene.

mixture of deep and technic/electro sounds

Stumbled On: DaKidd Moo

Is it really a rush better than stumbling across a crazy track when you least expect it? Nah. Not for me anyway. Last week when I was kicking it with my man Keem, we hit YouTube and Sound Cloud as a part of my new favorite activity: searching for non-covered Baltimore rap. Over the past few months, I've been treating local music as if I'm an outsider and it's been paying off in a major way. This time around, we caught wind of DaKidd Moo--an East Baltimore rapper with a voice you can't possibly overlook. At first I thought I was hearing my uncle. Then I thought, "This might be the Baltimore Boldy James." Then the dude from those classic Philly vs. Baltimore battles came to mind. Either way, what I was hearing was blowing my mind. 

On his track, "Just Bars", you get occasional trendy ad libs like "SQUAD", "GANG" and "SKURRTT" but that's minor shit to look over in the hook-less song. Moo is hitting on all cylinders here; his energy is at full speed throughout, the voice can't be denied and his wordplay is fluid and hard-hitting--something that local standouts like Young Moose, Lor Scoota, Lor Stackks and others still find trouble doing for the full duration of a track. A story is being told. It opens with: "Turn me up, bitch I'm in my zone/ I'm from East, you gotta keep a tone / I'm from where they let the knockers roam / They'll search you drawers right in front your home / I'm from Bradford where we sellin' stones / My block a vacant. Ain't nobody home."  Moo has sprinkled tracks all over the internet but this three-month-old track is probably his most proper introduction: he's telling you where he's coming from, his plans to provide for family and warning you to stop sleeping from now on.

The cinematic video, a seemingly subtle reference to Shottas, is mostly shot in his neighborhood, a car where he's being set up and a candle-lit room. It's about as raw as you can get but the skill can't be questioned, which characterizes Baltimore altogether. Doing some digging, I found that Moo has a tape being circulated on the streets right of the same name as the track, Just Bars. Hopefully it'll be available online sometime soon but either way I'm gonna go cop the physical and pray that some more undeniables are on it. 

Some of my other favorite bars from "Just Bars":

"My mama already got the Masi, I'm just tryna get me the Bentley/ Porsche truck for my lor sister, Kendall dipping in a 650/ Boobie said he gone keep the Lincoln, he don't ask for much just give him 650."

"Every time I come in the city it's a new nigga that's playin' the 50 / If it's beef tell 'em come and get me/ The thing like a I.D, I keep it with me."