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Realehood is a hip-hop artist from The Bronx, NYC. He recently dropped the single “Higher” to critical acclaim. This track so well summarizes the artist’s talent for self-evaluation and honesty. He gives us something from the heart that’s cleverly conveyed as well. While most rappers are trying to rap as fast as they can, or twisting and tweaking their voices with auto-tune, Realehood goes in entirely the opposite direction. And back to the old school, of clear raw lyricism and crisp metered diction. The result is a track that is atmospheric, soulful, grungy and captivating, with words and rhymes that can heard one by one. This is poetry in motion, backed by lushly layered head-nodding production.
The build-up is like lava simmering to the top of a volcano. Realehood has unlocked a new level to his artistic skillset, going for short phrases and vivid imagery. He sneaks in a heavy lyrical gems in every verse making the imagery striking. The lyrical tricks Realehood pulls off are impeccable.
Every line, every flow, every pocket, not a single second is wasted. I love how slow and unwinding it feels. A beat that’s steady. Realehood’s verses are transparent, and unraveling, inspired by a thinking mind. This sounds like his world, as the master of the introspective and retrospective universes.
Realehood’s voice is such an incredible build up tool, as the soulful and melodic backdrop enhances his insistent flow. Bar after bar his voice is engaging and the production is gripping – crisp, vivid, focused. Both have found the groove here. It’s a winning combination.
“Higher” is several things at once: a track by a rapper who showed up to do his job; a track by a man in the throes of moving his game up to the next level; a track by an artist who is trying to merge, both the old, and the new worlds of hip-hip, trying to find peaceful coexistence.
More than simply being a technically gifted rapper, Realehood certainly has a commanding voice. Rhyming over a multi-flavored beat, his resonating, crystal-clear delivery slices through and draws attention under any musical circumstance, as he chooses each of his words carefully. The sounds really possess the listener and make them feel all the emotions Realehood Q tries to convey in this song.
Realehood never gets overly preachy but obfuscates his lines just enough to leave some room for interpretation. This allows for the listener to have some questions so that they’ll keep re-listening and finding new meanings.On top of all that, Realehood also has impeccable taste in beats. “Higher” boasts a deeply distinctive instrumental with a groove.
“Higher” is really refreshing, as it lacks those larger commercial overtones found on most modern-day hip-hop releases. “Higher” is a flawless single, a flawless record, and a song you’ll be playing for years to come, as it doesn’t belong to any trend or particular era in the hourglass of hip-hop. It belongs to hip-hop. Period.
Song Credits “Higher”:
Lyrics: Samuel Sahid Fonah Jr.
Recorded: D Block Studios Yonkers
Engineered & Mixed: Jesus Fenandez
Mastered: Marc Felish Dominion Mastering
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