GodKing #ZeusXStyles is the most recent mixtape by Harlem-based hip-hop artist Crimdella. He characterizes his music as “trap power,” a style which is “just as fun and energetic as it is conscious and unafraid of social commentary.” Crimdella has been translating raw emotional language into street poetry almost all of his life, and this fact is evident from the large variety of flows and production vibes which have been teased out on this mixtape. Go ahead and take a listen.
“My profile looking like a motherfucking Pharaoh, but don’t profile me”; such is the hook of one of my favorite songs on the tape, streamable right above this text. Drippy keyboard licks surround reverb-soaked percussive thumps and claps – not sure if this track was self produced, but in any case it’s super compelling and groovy. A lot of the lyrical content on this tape echoes the sort of Black God tropes we see from Kanye on Yeezus (“Rah, Akanaten/ I’m wit the Black Gods /and we plotting”) with a pretty academically pleasing array of references. It’s always good to hear some thoughtful, powerful trap music.
Crimdella is clearly intent on making parallels between black power and classical mythology – it’s a really pleasant inversion of Western white supremacy tropes that rely on Greek mythology to justify themselves. We can hear this pretty clearly in “Madiba” (“we screaming for freedom we on that Madiba/ you more like Madea”) among pretty traditional trap music elements (circular-shifting tonal chord loops and minimal electronic percussion). I do feel a little bit like I’m missing out on what the lyrics are referencing – conflict in the black community, but also Crimdella yelling “victory”? I guess it’s confidence that makes you rise to the top, and this tape is definitely full to the brim with confidence and swagger.
I know I didn’t dissect this one track-by-track, but that’s because I wanted you, dear reader, to be able to make your own judgments on the dope tracks contained within this tape. Crimdella is clearly a rapper working his way up the social ladder in NYC, and soon people will be losing their shit to this music in throngs.
If you want to hear more from Crimdella, you can stream the rest of this mixtape on bandcamp or keep up with him on social media.
