Whattup Shufflers! Hope you um… had a good week? Stuff has been on one lately, so just make sure you’re staying safe and keeping your sanity, please. Are you keeping up with your New Year’s resolutions? Mine is keeping up with making this newsletter. I think I’m doing a good job so far. Let me know though!

Artist of the week: $NOT

The 21-year-old rapper is a special talent that everyone should know about. $not’s voice perfectly flows with any beat that has come his way. My favorite song of his is “Who Do I Trust”, which sounds like it will be on those anime music videos you see on Youtube. Look I found one.

A noticeable thing about $not is his song structure. Songs are usually under 3 minutes. A lot of other rappers do this, don’t get me wrong. What sets $not apart is how each and every song sticks with you and makes you want to repeat every single song so you blink and boom you’ve been listening to $not for 4 hours.

Project of the week: Beautiful Havoc

This album is only 28 minutes, but dammit it’s addicting. Every song sounds so different from each other and it speaks to how $not sounds unique and works with every beat. My favorite songs are “Revenge” and “Like Me” which has Iann Dior on it.

$not dropped 2 solid projects in 2020 and 2021 is shaping up for him to enter the stratosphere.

SONGS OF THE WEEK!

24hrs feat Post Malone - Malibu

This isn’t on Spotify, but damn it I love this song so much. I’ve been playing it for over 3 years. 24hrs, the brother of MADEINTYO is a great artist in his own right and you already know I like Post Malone’s music. 24hrs has a ton of gems on Soundcloud and it’s worth digging through them all.

Clairo - Hello? (feat. Rejjie Snow)

Are you into me, like I'm into you?

This 2018 song is still addicting after all this time. Clairo’s magical voice paired with Rejjie Snow is a perfect combo. I wish they made more music together. Clairo is definitely an artist that is going to show up on this newsletter more. This song only scratches the surface. Rejjie Snow too!

Claire Rosinkranz - Backyard Boy

This is one of the songs last year that makes me wish that we had a true summer to have picnics and cookouts and shit. The music video is so bubbly and colorful. This is Claire’s first breakout hit and I’m definitely sure it won’t be the last.

Beyoncé, Sharon Leal & Anika Noni Rose - One Night Only (Disco Version)

Without spoiling the musical, Dreamgirls is great and if this song doesn’t make you want to watch the movie that they made then I have nothing else to say to you. The 2006 movie is special and the soundtrack is immaculate.

Still Woozy - Window

The California singer has been making good songs for years. This is the one I constantly come back to and play. “If I got one thing right it was you” is such a great opening line. This music video is also perfect for the vibes of this song. Mans looks happy as hell.

Sample of The Week: Isaac Hayes - Hung Up On My Baby

The legendary 1974 song is incredible instrumentation. Isaac Hayes is a Grammys and Golden Globes award winner and with songs like these, it was easy to see why.

Producer Scarface turned the first part of this 6-minute jam and looped it to make the Geto Boys song “My Minds Playing Tricks On Me”. One of the most iconic songs of all time. The 90s features some of the best sample work that we’ll ever see.

Bonus: There’s also a fan-made music video version of this that stars Elmo. I’ll let you find that one for yourselves.

If you are new here and haven’t heard my podcast yet, come check it out! Episode 2 talks about Covering COVID with my friend Amanda Eisenberg (She’s a public health reporter)!

You can find it on Apple or Spotify