Julian Malone, the Chicago emcee and key member of the 2008ighties collective, has consistently assaulted his soundcloud with new music for fans to dig into, during the last few months. Each new track shows his artistic and creative progression, after having a tumultuous early 2013. While listeners ultimately reap only benefits from his generosity and hard work, there hasn't been a set date for his Diff.rent project that was supposed to see the light of day last year. Unfortunately, this isn't the optimistic update announcing the tentative release date, but thankfully, he did charitably give his followers some new quality tunes to enjoy.
On the first track, Malone puts his own twist on an Outkast classic, "Jazzy Belle". Hopping on the Organized Noise production, but with a little added reverb and some more effects, the young emcee details his attraction to a girl he is pursuing. It was perfect for Valentine's Day, addressing love and companionship in the most tender of ways, which compliments the choir like backdrop. However, this isn't a gushy romantic single, it is a challenging intimate look into the dynamics of a relationship. As he describes he passion for her, but also his hatred and confusion around her. Malone does all of this while rhyming in an almost confessional manner, as if he were telling his girl a secret; sounding more timid and afraid as the song progresses.
Julian borrows another beat for the second track, this time King Chip's "Cherish the Day", only this time called "Cherish the Ape". Anytime, anywhere, for whatever reason someone samples Sade, an angel is born; since this is the second time someone used King Chip's beat, he is now directly responsible for two cherubim. He is anything but meek in this song, yet he does maintain some of the same vulnerabilities. He raps about going out and seizing the day, carpe diem rhymes if you will, which makes sense with the sample chosen. Julian always reserves some time to be grateful and appreciative of those who support him, which he definitely does on this song, but he is ready to move pass his past to bigger and better things.
Diff.rent should be out March 1st (here is the tentative date, I lied earlier), but in the meantime, enjoy the free music that Julian Malone releases on his soundcloud. While there, you should check out his past projects to understand why his next mixtape is highly anticipated. You won't regret it.
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