(Velt Boyz)

Well, this is a great moment for me. The opportunity to check out a pair of artists I’ve never heard of before. The more I do my review shit, the more I uncover just how large the landscape is! Filled with hundreds of hungry and passionate artists just trying to make a name for themselves, and today we get to cover two more of them! Let’s get into it!

This is the brand-new album by the pair -Nova The Vagabond & RiverCurl, who both MC and produce these ten tracks, and in that respect, we get to discuss the art that these two bring to life across this tape.

I want to start with the production side of things. I can’t say I had an idea of what to expect regarding the sound, but it definitely wasn’t this. This one is one of the most smooth and beautifully crafted production efforts I’ve heard all year so far.

Each track has its own deliberately designed atmosphere that is equal parts powerful and elegant! All I could picture while listening to these beats was me walking through a forest during a nice hot day with the sun shining through! It has that kind of effect.

It’s the kind of score that makes you leave your problems at the door and sit and relax as you are soaked in with those jazz-ambient-soulful moments as these two craft a hip-hop soundtrack so soothing that it’s impossible to hate. All ten songs not only work well as singles but also have an incredible fluency to them that makes them work as a powerful and memorable score as mentioned above.

I love music like this. Enough of the culture turns into that Coke wave/boom bap violent sound. We don’t need any more of that. What we need are sounds like these that put emphasis on the lighter, more harmonious instrumentals that make you feel good inside and inspire peaceful thoughts, and for that reason, I fuck with this sound heavily! 

As far as the MC work goes. These two go equally hard on this front than they did on the beats! (Which makes sense as they made the production, so of course the bars are going to sound brilliant as well), but it’s not just the case of them sounding well executed, but it’s the level of chemistry and synchronicity they share between each other.

There’s a strong trust they both have for each other and their skills. When one passes the mic to the other, they trust that the other will maintain the energy and quality of the first. There’s no awkward transitions or any obvious power dynamic, just two dope MC’s coming together and showcasing their abilities over dope beats.

I’m taking sharp lyricism, introspective pen game, clever bars and one-liners, vivid verses, as well as a tight flow that blends perfectly with the beat to create some of the best words to beat I’ve heard in 2026.

I also love how they decided not to have any features! They are smart. They understand they have the charisma and character to carry an album with just them. Honestly, not all MC’s have that quality; some NEED features to be enjoyable, but thankfully, we don’t have that case here; we just have two men who have that strong blend of infectious cadence and upper-tier lyricism and combine the two, and you have ‘Velt Boyz’.

Trust me, this is a record you don’t want to sleep on. You get to hear a pair of men who show you how to ruin a record on both sides (the raps and production) and make it sound better and more cohesive than a lot of your favourite rappers. If you don’t believe me, go listen to it below! 

https://itsnovabeatz.bandcamp.com/album/velt-boyz