I wanted to return with something light and simple as I vacation with my girlfriend and her family. It’s also a sort of recurring list that I can replicate month over month and hopefully provide some aspect of consistency to my writing here for the future. These are my personal picks for the top 10 ‘rap’ songs of June 2025.

**Honorable mentions: “**Middle School” by TopOppGen (shameless personal plug here), “Mental Breakdown” by Raq Baby, “Violette” by Pi’erre Bourne.

10. Matt Ox - BLOODSHOT

Every once in a while Matt Ox comes out of the woodwork with a truly fantastic sonic proposition. 2023's "OXYgen" with Surf Gang was one of the projects of the year as far as I'm concerned — and he appears to be in rollout mode now with a slew of fresh singles. Although a bit aimless in his overall approach nowadays, the artist has come a long way since his breakout single “Overwhelming”, which irrefutably centered itself around the shock value of his teeny voice, and surprisingly catchy, hook-writing. A year later XXXTentacion would tap Matt for the platinum record “$$”. Dozens of collabs and years later, the vivacious energy of "BLOODSHOT" reminds you Matt Ox is still in his early twenties with plenty left to give, and that his taste in beats and eye for shaking up the landscape have never faded.

9. Xaviersobased - We discuss

In the aftershock of a Rolling Stone writeup, Pitchfork calling “Crisp Dubs” the 10th best record of the decade, and a wide plethora of shows ranging from tiny college frat rooms to festival showcases, Xaviersobased has emerged as the principal heir to the underground rap throne. In May he dropped two music videos, the swiftly-deleted “Hotel Room” and the bubbly “Want my byxx back”, both of which would have been strong candidates for my May 2025 list if I had written one. Xav has always been renowned for his beat selection and curation, but this cut takes it up even another notch, a collaboration between Cranes and Xav himself. What results is the sonic unearthing of an Egyptian tomb, one stuck replaying in the background of some Newgrounds cartoon game (of course), that just barely stretches itself above the minute-long mark.

8. Feng - XOXO

An auspice of what’s next to come from the United Kingdom, Feng has taken America by storm in the past few months. An avid fan of Foster the People and M.I.A., the latter whose name he utilized in a single from last year, the artist’s appearance at this summer’s Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash festival beckoned a reenergized interest in his persona and latest work. The artist has fully transitioned to pop with this record "XOXO", marking it in the sand, and its one of his strongest single debuts ever from a data perspective. The throwback style of “XOXO” is another addendum to the artist's constant appeal to early Clams Casino and niche Internet aesthetics. While not as good as May's "Teenage Dreamer, this anthemic love letter offers some of Feng’s best lyrics yet. It’s a total trip down nostalgia lane. Be ready for his sophomore project Weekend Rockstar on July 26.

7. Yhapojj - Turn That Mf Up

Another underground mainstay and Rolling Stone accomplice, Yhapojj returns to form with new project T.L.Y. (which seemingly dropped with no promotional pull or label oversight). Yhap went on an insane musical run in 2023 that seemed to stagnate in the last year, but "Turn That Mf Up" revives his classic vocal inflections and energy over his typical flavorful production choices (this one brought to us by Tylo, a frequent collaborator). Likely the most commercial out of a peculiar selection of early-2000s club/core underground fusion tracks on the project, "Turn That Mf Up" is a soothing while lamenting record, nearly tongue-in-cheek in its simplicity. For someone whose hit rate and publicity have been on a slight decline, Yhap's approach here brings listeners back to some of his first, and best, forward-thinking ideas.

6. Deathtoricky - praying for u

With thought to Ireland as a piece of the global rap scene that we detailed above with Feng, teenager Deathtoricky is a real honest contender. Dropping a constant slew of material in the early stages of this summer, his June 17 track "praying for u" is another pop-adjacent emblem out of his discography, also showcasing the cosmopolitan brand of production by Bxxxy (who, funny enough, Feng is quoted as saying to be one of his favorite producers of this moment). At a mere sixteen years of age, Ricky's brand — one that almost reminds you of distant creative relatives Slowthai and Fontaines D.C. — is already promising and only just beginning to collate and flesh itself out. A bright red ginger who draws comparison to many but inspiration from few, it's clear that "praying for u" is the easy pick of Ricky’s EP "spring cleaning".

5. Crucify April - kikk_shitt

Off-kilter, theatrical, vomitcore — I don't really care how you want to categorize Crucify April, but it's clear their gonzo-inspired style of EDM / rap fusion is on its way to Bushwick bars and Crim3s fans' Spotify algorithms. "kikk_shitt" which lands early on in April's June 20 feature length "Spellbook, Vol. 1" presents itself as kin to a ferocious 808-thumping creature, the song you Shazam at the end of a dungeon rave. The versatility and ingenuity on display (just in its two minute six second runtime) in "kikk_shitt" is very rare in any of these scenes. What makes it even better are the utterly hallucenogenic, albeit sporadically released, visuals that April drops on YouTube. Would bet the house that a meaningful cult fanbase emerges here by the end of the year. April’s genre-clashing risktaking and willingness to throw anything at the wall are best stated in the terms of punk, reborn.

4. EsDeeKid - Rottweiler

EsDeeKid's new project Rebel thrusts him to a surprising height in the British landscape that, as we’ve drilled into your head by now, is steadily raising its hand to crossover commercially into the US. "Rottweiler", the penultimate track, is what one would imagine the world would sound like if a scouser took over the Mexican cartels and fused them into an intergalactic empire, persisting hundreds of years in the future. It's a surprisingly catchy, drug-fueled statement piece, that if you ask me gives EsDee the aesthetic edge over all of his peers. Where niche figures like Phreshboyswag have come and gone, and Artist Partner Group-signed Fakemink continues to go on a hot streak on both sides of the pond, Esdeekid's rabid fanbase — molded over a longer window of time — steadily turn the wheel in his favor. With almost political undertones and a sci-fi undercurrent that pins wraith9's solo production work across the project, "Rottweiler" is as ferocious as you would expect it to sound. In today's landscape, you might hear the IRA playing this one early as tomorrow, or maybe it will just make its way to limited edition vinyl. Don’t miss the project, either; Rebel offers a home to viral single “LV Sandals” with Rico Ace and Fakemink, and multiple new features from the likes of maestros Rico Ace and Fimiguerrero.

3. Pradabagshawty & Souljaspirits - Nun to sum

Under celebrated producer/manager Whyceg's tutelage, Pradabagshawty has emerged the frontrunner of Atlanta's new wave, amidst other now-formidable artists like Nine Vicious and Protect. Ceg bared his teeth as the manager and boutique beatmaker of 2sdxrt3all, who built a credible foundation for more popular artists like Baby Kia and Lazer Dim 700 to propel forward. Prada is the newest face for Ceg to champion, a one of one artist who revives old Soundcloud conventions inasmuch as he completely reconfigures them, a sort of limited-edition genre mechanic. His new collab project with another wholly underrated producer and Atlanta native, Souljaspirits, 5SOULJAS, provides a rich assortment of earworms and familiar settings for the Cegular Records signing (a new venture with Santa Anna). But enough exposition on this one. The closing track of 5SOULJAS, "Nun to sum" has the best hook of June and this entire list, Prada gracefully providing the blueprint for his come-up, effervescently flowing from line to line. It's like the sly lyricism of Lil Wayne — "I was down bad, young n** was hungry, young n**** go to sleep eating on nun, watch how a n**** turn nun to sum" — combined with the suave delivery of Lil Tony. It's even better that the project comes preloaded with transitions, duly prepping the listener for this triumphant, yet lullaby-like closer.

2. HappyDranker - Saint Yves Gool

A new character has been unlocked in Philadelphia, coming equipped with animal mask, machete, and codeine bottle. A unique hybrid of Baby Smoove's polished monotone and something a bit closer to home, such as Ybcdul, HappyDranker's "Saint Yves Gool" is an uncompromised, psychedelic amalgamation of past regional favorites. Almost in the same vein of Pradabagshawty in that regard, HD feels like an elusive treasure scribbled somewhere on a pirate map that you really have to dig to find. A member of Fsdabender's crew, HappyDranker provides the hope that a crazy fresh style can emerge from Philadelphia again, the same way Skrilla came up a year ago. Note that all of these guys are friends… Interesting, right? Not that Skrilla is the next John Lennon, but there’s a reason kids are screaming “Six seven” without a clue about the digital forces thrusting interesting music on their doorstep. HappyDranker fits right in that mold, an oddball that might break on one algorithm or another, or remain shadowed in obscurity. On “Saint Yves Gool” (your guess is as good as mine to the name) HD makes candid statements about his gun collection — "I like how that bitch trick but that shit rusty" — and sputters alien freakazoid adlibs (0:49) carving out a brand new, totally different style in his hometown. It’s a coin flip as to whether this shit stays with the homeless in Kensington or makes its way to midwestern suburbia, but it sure is fun to listen to. Between overtly Hotline Miami-themed anonymous swag to Rob Zombie-inspired music videos, this newcomer's potential is reflected in this close second spot for the eccentrically named "Saint Yves Gool".

1. Snakechildpain (Boolymon) - megalodon

The most recent soundwaves to proliferate underground news pages and Twitter alt accounts come from none other than "outstanding", the first EP from Boolymon's rap alias, Snakechildpain. The notorious producer's infectious voice permeates 6 glitchy, seemingly ecstasy pill-infused jingles about slaying and jugging. By far the standout of the bunch is "megalodon", which has functioned both as Tiktok fodder for the unwashed masses and whistleblowing for the darker side of the Internet, with Booly psychotically decrying, "Jews run the news, boy I thought you knew!".

What's even more striking than his brazen words about Jewish people is how quickly Boolymon transitions from one platform to the next, from making tweaked out beats to giddily babbling all over them. One IG page comes down, another goes up, boom ten thousand followers. The offensive lines are nearly as ephemeral as the profiles vanishing, until you dig through Twitter or start a fight in Instagram comments, where hordes of junkies will converge on you like marine life. At one point on the project, the artist downplays making $30,000 on Distrokid, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. You'll find as you play "megalodon" over again that his outlandish statements stick with you like a fly in molasses, and you begin to like just how idiotic it all comes across.

Interspersed through it all are pleas to free Knocca, one of Boolymon’s incarcerated rapper friends, and melodies that sound right out of Tetris or beta Geometry Dash. When you count the artist’s more-than colorful lyrics alongside the boundary-pushing production of “megalodon”, amidst its titular stance that Booly is a giant shark not to be fucked with, it's clear the end product is just as driven to eschew accepted conventions as it is, in fact, completely absurd.

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Thanks for reading this list! Check out my other articles, which include think pieces and interviews, and please suggest new topics for me to cover. You can send those to me on Instagram @pluggvision, where you will also get updates on what’s coming next.

If you want to support further work, feel free to contribute to my ENS address on Ethereum, deanblunt.eth.

The following contains excerpts from an interview done over direct message.

Introducing Twizzxrd

I’ve been watching Yhap’s progression for a year and a half, and his process has never stayed the same. Though he constantly plays snippets on Instagram Live, his beat selection seems to shift each time he clocks in, maneuvering in the same fashion as the timbre of his voice. In recent months, YhapoJJ started to work very closely with Twizzxrd, a producer from Texas with a sound just as distinctive. Their ideas over the last year has seemed to exist in the transient ether of these livestreams: brought out in 8 bit-size chunks, malleable, held behind the curtain. Now that the curtain has been pulled back, what has come of it all? A New Genre.

The duo’s debut release A New Genre dropped December 30, 2023, preempting the New Year by two days, while ironically providing some of the most unique songs of the past twelve months. I got in touch with Twizzxrd, who reflected on his process working with YhapoJJ, the thought behind his craft, and what the future holds.

Pluggvision: When did you and YhapoJJ get in touch, and how?

Twizzxrd: Yhap got in touch with me (if memory serves well) midway through 2022 or a bit earlier than that. He reached out to me and told me my beats were one of a kind and asked if I could send some for recording. Honestly I didn’t know him when he came to me for beats, though I was happy to get recognized for my work by him.

There was a period in time where Yhap would only playback the songs he and Twizzxrd were making. Twizz’s sound is hard to describe: a one-time listener might find an analog comparing it to the music of early Internet flash programs (World’s Hardest Game, anyone?). To be more accurate, Twizzxrd intertwines unorthodox jerk patterns and bubbly plugg melodies to conjure up a fluid, spatial realm that becomes harder to categorize the longer you listen.

PV: What is your favorite beat you’ve produced?

T: Damn, that’s a big one. I’ve recorded over 600 beats but I’ve posted just under 200 of them, but if I had to choose I’d say my third ‘7 Sisters’ beat.

Twizz’s style shows a marked respect for the both the new Internet age and the childhood memories of Gen Z in the early 2000s, the generation he, Yhap, and most young artists belong to. His synths and drums could just as easily belong in Viper’s discography, or on a lost cassette your older brother gave you for graduating middle school. It’s befitting he would work with an artist like Yhap, who has previously defined himself through profile pictures of Courage the Cowardly Dog characters and callbacks to R&B hits like Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together.”

P: How would you describe the aesthetics of your production?

T: Kind of happy go lucky, with high tone frequency and a touch of nostalgia.

It’s this nostalgic energy that befits Yhap’s introspective, yet at times fearsome, lyrics - and that gives way to the project’s ethos of Renaissance-esque discovery and magic, enshrined by A New Genre’s cover. The album’s artistic framing also falls in line with visual themes present throughout Yhap’s discography, a transition between the underground’s prior medieval simplicity and the ethereal present.

The illuminating potential of Yhap’s voice, seemingly capable of infecting any instrumental he finds, posits an inflection point. Soon to surpass his peer Izaya Tiji on streaming platforms, he has found himself in pole position of a music scene that matured profoundly in 2023. With his prolific output and the newfound inventiveness of Twizzxrd, the rungs of the ladder to superstardom are well within reach.

I first became fascinated with Yhap’s material after hearing When Angels Cry, a 2022 release that put the rapper over a slew of regalia-rage hybrids, highlighting the sanctity of his vocal style. Yhap’s innovation has come full circle; his vocal work has outpaced the beats available to him, and so began his friendship with Twizzxrd.

P: How did you find your relationship with Yhap evolving towards the release of the tape?

T: Our creative chemistry was/is always there, like, I don’t always hop on his lives and such, but when I do it's always the same love given as received. We both know we’re making a new genre, a new wave together, so I think that built a bond.

A New Genre on first listen

The tape begins with “I've Seen Them In A Ship,” a ballad that introduces Yhap’s crooning against a trance-like backdrop, periodically accented by the classic ‘woman laughing’ sound bite of Mexikodro’s kit, immediately establishing the project’s peculiar fusion of aged plugg elements and Twizz’s electronic style. On lyrical standout “Man in Middle,” Yhap quickfires absurd bars over Twizzxrd’s addictive high-tone loop, leaving the listener to existentially reflect on lines such as “Got a lil white boy, invite him to the cookout” and “These n***** gay, these n***** RuPaul.”

P: There’s such an incredibly intriguing synergy between your loops and drums that makes this project feel so fresh. How do you achieve this balance?

T: It’s honestly hard to get that synergetic sound like I did for this tape. The drums are the easy part, but the constant change of energy I have when creating makes it hard to stay true to one sound. I guess it balances out through its instability.

The next song on the tracklist, “Meltdown,” is maybe the most purely jerk-adjacent instrumental on the project, but Twizzxrd pulls an ingenious sleight of hand. Using a completely unorthodox perc, the producer evades utilizing the stock jerk clap that would otherwise be expected by the listener. It transforms the song into its own symphonic arrangement, absent the conventions of the genre that Yhap has so carefully strived to innovate in, yet also set himself apart from.

On “My Love,” Twizzxrd’s booming sub-bass dominates a landscape of strumming guitars and fleeting synths, a familiar template for Yhap’s sentimental delivery and raw lyrics: “You’re my love, I’d kill for you.”

All of these little tweaks demonstrate Twizz’s intensive understanding of the needs of his vocalist, their tricks building off of one another in novel fashion. They also key in to the producer’s lived experience building up his work in unordinary circumstances.

P: How long have you been producing, and what got you into it?

T: For the better part of 3 years, coming on 4 and I honestly got into it for the healing perspective. Before I started producing I would listen to beats day in and out [to the point] where it replaced music for me. It helped through hard days and even harder times, but I ended up too depressed and went to a behavioral hospital for a few days. When I got out I had nothing to do, but the idea to make beats to help other people going thru what I did was my original inspiration.

The apex of the duo’s collaboration is found in “The Truth,” an exhibition of both of their rare skills. The instrumental leads in with provocative, plucking strings before Yhap bursts on to it - and Twizzxrd’s melody transitions into squiggly synths, before a gigantic 808 cascades into Yhap’s voice, the sword in the stone, an instrument of its own mythic proportions. Simultaneously emotionally raw and a dreamlike fiction, it feels like a crown jewel in the mythology of Xur, the spiritual wolf hidden but omnipresent throughout Yhap’s projects.

P: How do you feel the release of the project has gone?

T: I feel that it’s going great, we got the most criticism from this one because it’s all produced by me, but like Yhap said they not ready for it, it’s definitely a new genre.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DFec8NxekUE

In conclusion

YhapoJJ and Twizzxrd both kicked off 2023 in the unknown, yet their debut collaboration was one of the albums of the year, a divine remix of the jerk and deep South plugg that has become so popular in recent years. While clearly influenced by some of the progenitors of these styles, it feels like the duo have unlocked a proverbial achievement: that some sort of Hyrulean plaque will be dropped into their cabinet for venturing into the unknown, for accessing a distant kingdom.

P: Do you and Yhap have further plans to collaborate?

T: We haven’t spoken verbally about any further projects, but I can say it’s gonna be a lot more coming from us, whether it’s constantly or in bits and pieces.

The bits and pieces we see and hear - as quickly or as slowly as they come - will surely provide insight into the next phases of Twizzxrd’s evolution and in YhapoJJ’s artistic progression, the new darling of the underground. How long it takes is none of your business.

Just know you may be asked to listen to a whole new genre, once again.

Thanks for reading this piece! Be sure to follow Twizzxrd on Instagram (@twizzxrd), check out his tracks for sale, and support his work on all platforms. Of course, show love to YhapoJJ too. Free Top Sshotta. Follow me on Instagram @pluggvision for updates on what’s coming next. If you want to support further work, feel free to contribute to my ENS address on Ethereum, deanblunt.eth.

“Hehe, you’re now listening to YhapoJJ.”

The following contains excerpts from an interview over direct message.

Origins

Currently working out of New York City, Emmett, or as he’s best known - Aceii - grew up in Brooklyn, but went to high school further upstate in Kingston, New York. There, he met fellow Shed Theory member Chase (@milkreset) who was long-time friends with the group’s de facto founder, Marlon DuBois (@chewychips).

Pluggvision: How did you come to meet others in the Shed? Who did you meet first?

Aceii: “Marlon grew up in the town next to Kingston, so Milk [Chase] introduced me to Marlon around 2018 and that was before I made music.”

PV: What does the Aceii name mean, if anything?

A: “Ace is my middle name so I thought Aceii was more fun, my friends call me Ace and that’s what I find myself introducing myself as more and more. My last name’s a mouthful so my parents gave me the middle name Ace if I ever wanted to change it if I needed to make a name for myself.”

https://soundcloud.com/aceii4/sets/time-to-re_collect-myself

Several months after the debut Shed release, Aceii dropped Time to Re_Collect Myself on SoundCloud, a three-song EP bursting with innovative cloud rap sounds and laced with sprinkles of digicore. The otherworldly “dreaming 4 u” positions Ace’s voice as a central instrument, like a synth, painting a somber yet wondrous picture. In a class by itself, the facets of Aceii’s unique sound run parallel to his diverse taste in music:

PV: Who would you consider some of your favorite artists?

A: “My Chemical Romance, Thug, Chief Keef, Radiohead, I really love the soundtrack for the film “The Point” by Hardy Nilsson as well, just to name a few.”

PV: If there was any artist - living or dead - that you could work with, who would it be?

A: “Lil Yen.”

Lil Yen, who has worked with a vast number of artists in the underground both as a rapper, and as producer Yen5k, stuck out to me. I asked Aceii more about his early discography to better understand his process.

PV: One of my favorite songs of yours is “Mystic,” which put me on to your introspective, almost spiritual lyrics. What’s your method for recording?

A: “I don’t write any of my music, it’s all just how I’m feeling in the moment.”

https://soundcloud.com/aceii4/mystic-prod-kohl

On “Mystic,” Ace’s first single on SoundCloud, he pitch-perfectly strings together dissociative and contemplative bars alike over a celestial beat. Kohl’s production style begins to exemplify the ambient style of ‘Nod’ that has come to define Shed’s work as a group in the past year. It’s a blissful listen, a sort of ethereal addiction that keeps you coming back for more.

Burrows and an emergent aesthetic

Shortly later, Aceii would drop his first full album, Burrows, with features from five different Shed members. The project furthered the experimental drums in the production of his preceding singles - the deep-bass sound pioneered by Gyozuh, Kohl, and Iokera.

PV: Do you have certain producers you like to work with especially?

A: “Gyozuh, Kohl, Murph, sorrovw, follow - shoutout ikesmissing haven’t worked with him in a minute but he helped early on with Nod Theory + Lurch Theory, vnknvn, g0bln, the list could go on but these are OGs.”

On Burrows, the clippy, mysterious “Backseat” fits in an eclectic grouping of features from Marlon, Henry Mosto (@henrymosto) and Dream Caster @realdreamcaster). Standout single “Planes” reveals a labyrinthian stroke in his lyrics on a dream-like, delirious instrumental. When I first saw the video for Planes, I was impressed by the world it created, the way Shed subtly exists within it. Shot and cut by Marlon, it’s one of a handful of visually lush, concise pieces on Aceii’s YouTube channel.

PV: If I remember correctly, the “Planes” music video was shot in England. What was it like going abroad for Shed, and performing your music?

A: “That was stressful, because originally I was doing graphic design stuff in Copenhagen and had to fly out and meet them for like two nights, then hop on a flight back to Denmark and go back to the states. That was a lot of Shed members’ first time abroad and it’s always cool whenever your friends [are] excited about stuff like that, it was a cool experience I fuck with London.”

With Shed gaining notoriety, Aceii continued to release singles, with the drowsy-yet-melodic “Faceoff” reaching 75k plays on SoundCloud. In September 2022, his EP Aceiipt4 dropped, and took the Nod sound to another level. Chock full of even creepier and sonically murky beats, it oriented Shed fans toward the group’s full-length album Lurch Theory that dropped several weeks later on October 6th, 2022.

PV: Your beat selection is really unique and boundary-pushing, with a lot of sub-bass and ethereal synths. What appeals to you about these instrumentals?

A: “It’s weird stuff, for me personally I’m trying to wrap my head around a perfect balance of what the underground needs and what the underground wants.”

More recently, Aceii released “Buddy,” a song with a style reminiscent of the dark glo beats that have continued to dominate underground rage. Showcasing his tonal versatility - from songs that sound like they have just been uncovered from deep within a primal bog, to stage-blaring anthems - Ace always maintains the poignancy of his one-of-a-kind voice.

The evolution of Aceii

Following over a year of artistic progression and the maturation of Shed as a namesake group, the stage was set for a new album from Aceii. Earlier this summer, he dropped Druup, an effervescent blend of his varied takes on ambient trap, each track seamlessly flowing into the next.

PV: Your most recent album, Druup, combines some of your glo and ambient/Nod beat sensibilities with an altogether fresh, futuristic sound. How did you craft the album?

A: “I just wanted to make stuff people could get lit to - a lot of the Nod stuff is very sleepy and ambient which I love so much but I wanted to see if there was a way to make it more accessible to people. It’s not my favorite tape by any means, and I don’t think I’ve made my “favorite” tape yet, but me and Marlon have a tape coming out in the winter that has potential…”

From the monumental buildup of “Intro” which Ace co-produced, to the artfully-placed features, and the project’s impeccable sound design, Druup is as much a testament to Nod aesthetics as it is a calling card - an open invitation to experience its ingenuity in one unitary place. When prompted with the question of his favorite song off the album, Aceii named “Delta/howitfeels,”  and it’s easy to see why. The two-parter begins with an interlaced, ghostly vocal sample complimented by swirling adlibs. Somewhat unexpectedly but provocatively, “howitfeels” transitions in, a bone-chilling instrumental led off by an even higher-pitched, introspective version of Ace.

https://soundcloud.com/aceii4/delta-how-it-feels-prod-kohl

The eponymous track co-produced by Sorrovw and Dumb, “Drup,” reintroduces the feel of “Buddy” in a more subtle fashion, letting Ace balance the ferocity of glo with the surreal passages flush throughout the rest of his discography. These individual pieces all lead into the wonderful closer that is “Pedal,” an invitingly catchy rendition of Nod, with Aceii’s *Yeah* adlibs interjecting in the second half like calls down from heaven. Pedal is also the most recent - and maybe the most crisply shot - music video Aceii has put out.

Druup therein summates Ace’s work to date, not only in the realm of music, but visual art, and the way that Nod can be imbued in both image and sound. Not only does Aceii design all of the covers and promo material for his work, he has a penchant for conceptual design.

Given the artist’s background in graphic arts and past efforts in physical fabrication, I had to query what is yet to come.

PV: The True Religion jean bag you designed a while back was sick. Do you have further plans for fabrication and merch design, for yourself and/or for Shed?

A: “I have a lot of stuff in the vault for myself as well as Shed, more recently I’ve been focused in on Shed merch and got some samples made…”

With his multidisciplinary talents and the trajectory of his art, it is only a matter of time before Aceii gets his flowers. With Marlon and Laker (@nextlevelultimate) gaining immense traction under the limelight that has been shone to Joeyy, Aceii remains an underrated fixture in the group, a pioneer of much of what has driven the collective forward.

Less than a month ago, Aceii released “1 verse,” a track produced by him, Missing, and Nitemare/Novagang-affiliated Zoot (@zoot.xp). Even for Ace, it’s a single rife with surprises, including jersey club-influenced drums and an abrasive yet on-brand outro that lets the chorus shine. And only a few days ago, following the end of the Joeyy/Nod tour, Aceii’s “Chainlink *Shadowmix*,” was finally released, a song fans heard all summer as the opener to Shed’s tour sets.

https://soundcloud.com/aceii4/chainlink-shadowmix-prod-gov

Frequently collaborating outside the Shed - and being co-signed by DJ Smokey - it is clear that the personality of Ace’s work is seeping into the underground.

But what does Shed mean to Aceii?

PV: Is recording at the actual physical Shed an important part of the group’s identity? Or does Shed truly signify other things?

A: “Shed really embodies what people can do when they come together.

We are 13 people and it’s sometimes hard to create music when there’s ideas coming from every direction. We rarely record in the actual Shed, a lot of it is just a laptop that is placed in front of us and we do whatever we do. Shed is never one thing in my opinion because not all of us have the same story or background, we all have our little bit of our story that we contribute. It’s fun that way, it’s natural and un-choreographed.”

A common trope in the group’s iconography is the use of utterly mystifying language - made-up phrases, ideas sampled from dream realities, destinies that seem to have no direction. Even the word “theory” that comprises half of Shed’s moniker - and so dutifully claimed by its clan, fans and members alike - seems to refer to questions that have no answer.

PV: I understand there is probably not a literal definition, but what does having a ‘theory’ mean to you?

A: “It’s just an idea that I can’t talk about, a vague thought that only I’ll understand.”

Thanks for reading this piece! Be sure to follow Aceii on Instagram (@aceii4), check out his music videos, and support his work on all platforms. Follow me on Instagram @pluggvision for updates on what’s coming next. If you want to support further work, feel free to contribute to my ENS address on Ethereum, deanblunt.eth.

Theories that are rejected by the outside world.

With newgens labeling him a Ken Carson clone and various underground pages routinely backing his releases, attention is on Osamason all across the aisle. His style of glitchy and ad-lib laden delivery and signature choice of distorted beats by producers ok (@wegonebeok) and boolymon (@boolymon) both characterizes the direction the underground is heading while sounding dynamic and solitary in its own right.

Infamous for his peculiar, experimental 808s that often sound more like fax machines than FL Studio elements, producer perc40 (@perc40) has been another instrumental influence on Osamason’s sound. While this persuasion of beatmaking is located on the third track of Osama Season via the perc40-produced “Vlone,” it is even better captured by “slime krew,” a collaboration between Osama, Wildkarduno, and Smokingskul from several months ago.

https://soundcloud.com/osamason/slime-krew-ft-wildkaruno

Despite these experimental cues that have doubtlessly informed the progression of dark plugg, Osama has begun to achieve broader recognition for his recognizable flow and his unique persona. Not only is the cover of Osama Season derived from an unused alternative cover for Playboi Carti’s Self-Titled, but Osama’s album briefly surpassed Whole Lotta Red on the Apple Music charts.

Like Carti, Osama has a penchant for revision and in some respects, perfection. At only 12 songs, Osama Season may seem short, but it amalgamates the artist’s varied takes on plugg into a unified whole. “Werkin” introduces a melodic, danceable side of Osama, while the Nine9-produced “Anti” provides an ethereal interlude before the hard-hitting, if not utterly villainous pieces on the tail end of the tracklist. Osama Season finishes off with the tempting synths of “Troops” — a song produced by ok and first released as a single — which will likely become Osama’s anthem going forward.

What’s more, Osama’s following on Instagram has more than doubled to over 35k since the release of his album just a few weeks ago. Aided in great length by the unwavering support of underground music pages such as HBK (@hbkundergroundsoldier) and Tubman (@tubmanunderground), he has also benefited from a spur of live sets. On July 26th, Osama performed his debut album live for the first time at the Vercetti Way Show in NYC. Far from a headliner in the event’s lineup, his set nonetheless brought crazy energy from old and new fans alike. Creative director Tycho Burwell captured 4K footage of the event under his production handle ‘The Toxic Lifestyle’ below:

The underground rap music community has always existed in some form or another— and with the continued development of social media technology and the resurgence of SoundCloud rap post-COVID, it keeps steadily growing. Osamason’s success is partially owed to the strength of this community; but in the same regard, Osama’s popularity has emboldened the artists and media producers that made his current trajectory possible.

The list of Instagram profiles that have promoted and spread Osama Season through sonic avenues online is impossibly long to list, but they all incrementally contributed to the publicity of an artist who several months ago was virtually unknown. Not only do I think Osama Season to be a significant contribution to dark plugg and its analog genres, it is a fantastic example of what can happen when small artists and creatives work together to advance an artistic movement forward.

Music, memes, independent journalism, and fashion have collided in a way that was never before possible. Influencers can now shape what becomes discovered and integrated into popular culture. And in the case of Osamason, anyone who works hard enough and hones their style can take the spotlight. His craft of atmospheric synths and a new take on rage is a fresh premise backed by practically everyone in the underground rap scene. This Friday August 4th, Osamason will lead the lineup of the TUB X HBK Atlanta show. From the more well-known Smokingskul to to budding mainstays Siyahxo (@siyahhendrix), 1oneam (@1oneam), and Percosits (@mikebrokeasf), the concert will be an era-defining moment for the culture.

If you want to find more of Osamason, check out his tape with Boolymon and one of my favorite projects by him to date, 2 slime. Furthermore, be sure to follow @osamaseason on Instagram, Osama’s alt and the first place to hear snippets and other artist content.

Thanks so much for reading this piece and be sure to follow me on Instagram @pluggvision to see what’s coming next. If you want to financially support further work, feel free to contribute to my ENS address on Ethereum, deanblunt.eth. 

Released in July 2021, the visual template for Rod Kimble may seem like it’s been done before: an early-20s white rapper, clad with tattoos and messy brown hair, smoking a blunt, championing Moncler and B.B. Simon belts. But Woody’s vocal style and beat selection are anything but typical. Arranged around somber acoustic chords, Woody’s catchy delivery on the song is the perfect introduction to his discography: a radical, ambitious infusion of gothic and emo aesthetics with plugg, a now-pervasive genre recently popularized in the SoundCloud scene.

Dream Caster belongs to a pioneering collective of artists known as Shed Theory with roots throughout New England. Perhaps the best known from the group is Joeyy (@jxxyy), who has risen to viral fame from the pantheon of memes concerning his appearance and style, and who recently came under management from Nextel (@nextel). Nextel, who formerly managed Yeat and practically turned him into a household name, has also grown close to Marlon DuBois (@chewychips), another rising member within Shed. In fact, as its de facto founder, Marlon has the key to the eponymous ‘shed’: a single room outfitted with a studio setup, located at Marlon’s family home in New York. The shed was the launching pad for many of the group’s early songs together and traces the development of their artistry. Shed Theory as a collective thus represents the unique merging between physical and digital modes of creation that has very lately defined underground music, while also simply being a distinctive moniker for a group of close friends.

Shortly after I found out about Joeyy a couple of years ago, I began to dissect the project that is the Shed. One of the more elusive and incomprehensible on social media was Dream Caster, and after the release of his eponymous first album woody in February 2022, I quickly became a fan. Woody’s esoteric online presence was contrasted by his open reception of fans. He responded to my direct messages and was always grateful for support. Last fall, I was lucky enough to meet Woody in L.A. for a show featuring the whole of Shed (sans Henry Mosto and Facy) in addition to several other staples of the underground: RXK Nephew, BBY Goyard, even Matt Ox. Not only was he a lively performer, blasting “Steven Tyler'' and chanting his first anthem “Ugly,” he was both intriguing and perceptive in conversation. But he was reserved - not quite shy - and I could tell that he had a ton of ideas swirling in his head.

A few questions later

In March of this year, I reached out to Woody with a few questions to better understand his work and goals. Without revealing too much, he made me even more interested in his influences and the progression of his style.

Woody says the name “Dream Caster” was a simple decision - it rings out as a fantasy camp name. It’s a persona that comports with his mystical, if not otherworldly brand of plugg. The first concert that he went to growing up was Big D and the Kids Table, a late 90s ska punk band. His favorite music group is hard to choose, but Converge (a fantastic metalcore band) was the front-runner when I asked. When prompted with the question of the modification of My Chemical Romance’s Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge cover for his project My Favorite Kill, he states it was for his “swag.”

This does not sound like the average profile of a rapper who found his roots on SoundCloud, and that is exactly the point. Woody’s varied musical interests and background growing up provided the basis for his experimentation, his vocals ranging much closer to alt metal than rap. He cites his biggest influences as Mitch Lucker and Joey Jordison, the former the late vocalist of Suicide Silence, one of Woody’s other favorite bands, and the latter the pioneering drummer of Slipknot (known as #1). Often paired with the melodic influences of groove metal, Lucker’s insane vocal distortions almost made screamo sound rhythmic, like rapping. On the other hand, Jordison was particularly effective at elevating the persona and public image of Slipknot, a cue Woody has taken in his oft-psychotic and purposefully delirious Internet presence. Yet Woody doesn’t label himself in any one direction, and he said that explicitly. When I prodded him about how his vocal style has progressed, he responded it’s “just my voice.”

That’s not to say he wasn’t inspired by those who came before him - he utilizes many of the sonic devices provided by figures such as Bladee and Black Kray, their cloud rap, introverted delivery and gothic subject matter seeping into his drugged-out encapsulation of the raw energy found within metal. A curious coincidence, Woody grew up in Westfield, MA, which shares its name with a popular song off Bladee’s album Red Light. Bladee’s discography was incredibly impactful on Joeyy and other members of Shed early on, but their new brand of ambient trap has severed itself from any identifiable inspiration. Woody lies at the center of this paradigm, one of the few underground artists today willing to integrate archaic, if not utterly nostalgic, 2000s metal aesthetics into the various new directions underground rap is taking.

One of my favorite songs by Woody is “Steven Tyler,” which was released on the Fetch EP several months after woody. The infectious chorus lays Woody’s dark, disaffected voice bare, with minimalist lyrics that convey his persona.

“I got a lot to say…

I just got better, please don’t come my way…

I feel like Steven Tyler, how he walk this way..

And yes I’m booted up, why I talk this way.”

The instrumental for Steven Tyler coincidentally reminds me of “Friday Nite”, an older collaboration between Bladee and Black Kray. Both songs are emblematic of Woody and Kray’s experimentation with their voice, their melancholic chanting illustrating scenes of pill popping, lost love - the struggle that inevitably comes before the shine. It would be possible to conflate their styles, as a user on Reddit did below, but to do so would be to admit you haven’t really listened to Dream Caster.

When I asked if he had heard Friday Nite, Woody said he hadn’t, and while he clearly draws from Black Kray, that inspiration has merely driven his sui generis style further into its own lane. Woody’s beat selection tends to trend glitchier, his lyricism is far more self-deprecating, and his live performance style much more hectic.

One of a kind

My Favorite Kill marked Woody’s further thematic movement towards emo and goth, an EP that felt as if it could serve as the soundtrack for a teenage romance where someone tragically dies at the end. Truly conceptual in nature, the tape kicks off with police sirens and Woody muttering on “Keep Away,” introducing some of his most intricate vocal inflections. After that, “Jane & Jesse” bursts on with an extremely catchy hook on a bitcrushed plugg backdrop, a single released before the EP that has since become Woody’s most popular solo track.

But the tape gets even more ambitious. On “Baby If We’re Going Down,” Woody’s low tones rumble in parallel to the hypnotic 808, complemented by an addictive hi-hat pattern. The song is a daring, but effective, bridge between the former track and “Heaven,” one of Woody’s most heartfelt songs.

“And I don’t care what you’ve been on,

And I can smell the cheap wine and perfume,

And I spent last night, so over you

Every soldier guards heaven, o-oh,

But not all can make it.”

The pure affect of “Heaven” epitomizes Woody’s style, his ability to turn a single hook into an ear-catching chorus that you want to scream at the top of your lungs. It’s hard not to label My Favorite Kill Woody’s magnum opus thus far - its replete with the Y2K influences of mainstream emo bands while sounding like an entirely new, hard-hitting, emotional edition of pluggnb. Tongue in cheek, Woody even recently branded his style “lispnb” on Twitter - a stylization that accounts for the uniqueness of his voice, and leaves the rest to mystery.

https://twitter.com/real1woody/status/1677483348325720066?s=20

With or without the figures borrowed from Three Cheers, on this tape Woody truly formulated his own class of heartbreak, complete with the maniacally scribbled titles of a would-be psycho. It’s a massive aesthetic accomplishment that Woody can sound as menacing as he does while simultaneously making it seem as if he could break down at any moment.

Waiting for My Favorite Kill last fall was an exciting journey, particularly because it coincided with “Dream Caster” becoming much more well known: Shed released their first full-length album, Lurch Theory, and Woody went on a run of singles that brought greater attention to his discography. When I met up with Wood in Los Angeles, I had heard many of the snippets that would become the leading songs off the tape, but the official release of My Favorite Kill several months later solidified my eagerness to document his progression as a musician.

The hype was mounting for another full-length project, and on February 24th, Woody dropped Book of Wood, a 10-song album furthering his experimental pedigree. From his angsty delivery on “Fable,” to his selection of the Ripsquad-esque beat for “Black and White,” the album was quite unlike anything I’d ever heard. Woody’s self-deprecating lyrics are tinged with a more forceful, psychotic tone - “Opiates on my cell phone,” while the tag “Hit them with the fentanyl” appears several times on “iPhone.” To take it even further, the final track on Book of Wood echoes the alternative rock pieces that reverberate on nearly every Dream Caster project; but here, with the addition of Marlon, Woody moves it up a notch, crooning over a post-punk instrumental. It feels like the transition track to a full-blown live instrument metal project, Woody’s barking taking center stage, its own kind of peculiar instrument.

“There’s not much left of me,

I’ll take what’s left of you,

I keep you in my bag,

at least what’s left of you.”

Towards the future

In very little time, Woody has established an impressively varied collection of mixtapes and singles, borrowing from the dominance of plugg but increasingly positioning his persona towards a complex synthesis of metal and alternative. He’s taken the seeds planted in the past two decades by such pivotal figures as Bladee, Black Kray, and indeed his idol Mitch Lucker to push the envelope of underground rap forward. While his work may be an acquired taste, it has an aura of raw emotion that I don’t think anyone else from the hyper-online SoundCloud era has come close to invoking.

What’s better is that Woody’s involvement with Shed Theory has been mutualistic, and the creativity of Shed seems to effervescently flow between its members. With Joeyy’s ascent - both in meme echo chambers and on streaming charts - Shed as a group will continue to shape the paths of the most off-the-wall sounds in the underground. Meme culture has embraced their distinctive, if not ironic, aesthetics and the caricatures of Joeyy, Marlon, and Laker have only proven to increase their publicity. Combined with the sonic humor of DJ Smokey’s viral nuke tags (who also hosted Woody’s recent collab tape with Acid Souljah, Acidcaster) and the stewardship of Nextel, it’s clear that Shed will be much more familiar to the average listener in no time at all.

What’s next for Woody? After taking the stage with Joeyy at Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash 2023, he embarks on a Joeyy & Shed nationwide tour this summer. Continuing to release singles, Woody has paved the way for non-rap genres to intervene on the prevailing sounds in the ever-expanding underground. I look forward to seeing him, and the rest of Shed, in Chicago on August 6th. I hope that you, too, will be able to get a ticket for Shed’s first trip across the United States - I have a feeling it will be a momentous occasion.

“And I think I’m someone, but I’m no one,” - Dream Caster, “Heaven”

Thanks for reading this piece! Follow me on Instagram @pluggvision for updates on what’s coming next. If you want to support further work, feel free to contribute to my ENS address on Ethereum, deanblunt.eth. Please support Woody @realdreamcaster on Instagram and check out his newest music video, “did not did” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHaJMRfNBM4.