(Hagler Hearns)

Now, for me personally, this is one of the most anticipated projects to look forward to! Why? Because it consists of one of my favourite lyricists in the game. A man who has a pen game and vocabulary like no other; it’s in this skill of his that makes his music so interesting. So with that in mind, it’s time to get into it again!

This is the brand-new album by MC/Producer Thought Provokah and Producer Numbz and tbey dropped a new batch of 12 tracks, coming in at just under half an hour, and from the first 30 seconds of the intro, you can tell this thing is special. 

You can hear him about to leave to hit the road but decided to put on an old VHS tape, and the one he chose was the legendary ‘Marvin Hagler Vs Thomas Hearns’, which he becomes hooked on immediately, and that’s how the album is transported into the music itself.

Throughout the whole record, there are moments where we are taken back to the real life of Thought as we hear his insight, thoughts, and comments, as well as what sounds like TV clips, snippets, and news reports all revolving around this specific fight.

As far as the actual music itself goes, ‘the production’ is a beautiful mix of Soul/Funk/Classical infused with modern-day Hip Hop. Thought has always had the impressive know-how to combine a certain style of influences and blend them with the present-day attributes to create a sound not many others are rocking with and working alongside Numbz these attributes are increased 10x fold!

Their beats always sound pure, clean, and crisp. Never one to fuck around and go over the top for attention’s sake.

Nah, he’s always kept his music organic and, most importantly, FLUENT! 

Each track blends well with each other. The different versatility of beats is just enough to separate each track from the next, but similar enough in atmosphere that it helps build each track to the other 12 in order to achieve that sonic river-like effect, a smooth and continuous motion of harmony, execution, and flawless arrangement of music that makes you feel like you’ve just finished listening to a grand score rather than an average hip-hop album. ‘And in this case and context, that actually is true.’

I already spoiled how I feel about his MC work above, but if you’ve been following my page, it should come as no surprise. I’d honestly say as far as complex and lyrically forward rappers go, my top 3 (in the underground) would be in no real order:

-Thought Provokah 

-KnowItAll

-FLYG

These three men are in a class of their own that remind me of the early to mid-2000s era of the independent scene, or as I like to call it ‘the poetry rap era,’ cats like

-Illogic

-Aesop Rock

-Slug

-Milo 

Men who prioritised vocabulary and verbal cues and structures over all else. Rappers who would have a maxed-out stat in literacy if this were a video game, and Thought fits in that same lane, and that’s why I fuck with him so hard! On all his joints (especially conceptual ones like this), he’s always making the listener think and spit knowledge! 

Always trying to engage the mind of the audience and make them understand and appreciate the art of real lyricism. Just because you rap doesn’t necessarily mean you are a great lyricist; those are two different terminologies, and he’s excellent at both!

Across this tape, he showcases his wit, power, and originality in his verses by not only constantly tying into the main theme of the album but also in his set-up bars and above-average verses that you literally have to playback in some parts to capture the weight of what he was saying! 

He’s a lyrical genius with a solid flow, charismatic as hell, and true to himself. He knows his lane and he does his best to flourish and stay creative WITHIN said lane, and that’s a realisation I wish more artists took. 

Overall, as I expected, this is another groundbreaking drop. From his exceptional pen game to his quality production! This will be the album to pay attention to, I guarantee it!

https://open.spotify.com/album/7CGBV9W1qn6rhYF0regVAj?si=ejXIBQcdTn6sQ52uyWaTrQ