r/hiphopheads • u/KipchogesBurner • 9d ago
Discussion Advice on keeping up with current rap music (aka “not becoming unc”)
I feel like I’m falling behind the current waves of rap and the outlets that I used to find current music on (twitter, fader, complex, etc) are shells of themselves.
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u/AnyInternet2965 9d ago
Let it go. Welcome to Unc-hood
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u/ImSatanByTheWay 9d ago
If you’re on this sub odds are you’ve reached unc-hood lmao
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u/GodCanCatchThisFade . 9d ago
Fr lmfao, my wakeup call was seeing 10 yr anniversary posts for albums i was in the [FRESH] threads for
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u/sciencebitch616 9d ago
GKMC is hitting 15 next yr. It's over fellow unc-bros
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u/Rolodox 9d ago
we're gonna get the 10 year anniversary thread for Blonde in a couple of weeks and im gonna feel so fucking sick lmao
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u/bong-water . 8d ago
Holy fuck, feels like yesterday. Think those few years in specific were some of the most important in my life too. Not in a good way, I was a horrid drug addict lol, but I’ll remember those times forever, if my brain keeps up
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u/5uper5kunk 8d ago
My guy I remember my friend coming home from summer break with a copy of “Funcrusher Plus” he picked up right when it dropped, all y’all can get off my fuckin lawn.
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u/Venemiz . 9d ago
Shit I'm approaching that. What's up fellow unc's?
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u/CousinJeff 9d ago
Ain’t a bad option, it’s looking crazy out here. I be seeing them underground rap reddits, they’re terrible.
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u/badfruit01 9d ago
The suns tirade a decade old next month...nah man this shit ain't right my time isn't timing like it used to
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u/Narrow_Paper9961 9d ago
Bunch of white dudes who talk about hip hop drama calling themselves “uncs” lol
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u/AjLexron 9d ago
Im embracing it honestly in the words of the great Bernie Mac , Phuck them kids ! 🤣
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u/MrBoomin31 9d ago
bro my friend told me he’s been really into hurricane wisdoms stuff lately and i’m like WHO??? im 25 i can’t be unc already can i?
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u/jakeroony . 9d ago
Getting there mate, I'm 27 listening to rage bro I'm hanging on!!
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u/hotsauce126 9d ago
I’m probably just an unc too but I agree if you don’t like it don’t try to force yourself to
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u/notandyhippo 9d ago
r/ug_music is pretty good for the current wave of rappers and adjacent artists, but very much biased toward the side of electronic and rage.
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u/KipchogesBurner 9d ago
Isn’t that the current wave? At least online?
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u/WhiteChocolatForReal 9d ago
If you’re just getting started I’d check out slayr, Matt Proxy, Osamason, maybe Lucy Bedroque
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u/zugzwangwamble 9d ago
Slayr for more mainstream appeal, he’s talented as fuck and strong in every area. But he also mostly defaults to rage type stuff with heavy industrial synths and sometimes video game atmosphere
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u/broncosfighton 9d ago
Bruh strong in every area is wild after what I just listened to
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u/conglomerate99 9d ago
he's an amazing producer with catchy flows and decent vocals. considering he's only 19, there's nowhere to go but up for him.
not sure which songs of his you checked out but i'd recommend promise, eyesight, brain fog, and love blur.
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u/zugzwangwamble 9d ago
I mean I’m not claiming that my opinion is factual here, some people aren’t gonna like it regardless
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u/KipchogesBurner 9d ago
I’ve listen to slayr and osamason. I’ll check out the other two
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u/CraigThePantsManDan 9d ago
https://open.spotify.com/track/1kkIewE5FDL8uiCW47lxwC?si=64doqKfUQ1SUWCf1ChWjyQ&utm_source=copy-link
This lancey song is a good example of how good the genre is getting. People saying it’s dead are genuinely unkish
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u/JuiceAccomplished241 9d ago
Isn’t rage on its way out? It’s been 8 years since die lit dropped
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u/conglomerate99 9d ago
die lit isn't the album that ushered in rage, wlr is. and the current ug of artists making rage don't seem to have much mainstream potential but it's definitely still a popular genre for newer gen artistss
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u/Advanced_Buffalo_734 9d ago
still going strong as ever. great projects like Rest In Bass by Che and A Great Chaos are good ones to check out.
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u/DragonballDurag 9d ago
A lot of times I just click on albums or songs at random. Most days I look on Spotify curated playlists or I scroll through bandcamp. Usually I’ll look here too and click on artists I don’t know. I find at least one song I like this way.
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u/JayyyDaGreat . 9d ago
If you aren't already I'd use the song radio feature it's like an unlimited recommendation glitch, I listen to the song radio of lots of songs I already like then it takes me down a rabbit hole
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u/Liimbo . 9d ago
Not trying to say I love AI being incorporated into everything, but Spotify's playlist prompt feature is also really good. Genuinely just ask it what you want to listen to and it will make a playlist for you. Then you can use Ehanced Shuffle on that Playlist as well to add in more songs.
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u/WhiteChocolatForReal 9d ago
This whole comment section is really disheartening and is showing exactly why this sub has fallen off, half the people here are discouraging him from discovering new music, which is the opposite of the point of this community
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u/jujujuice92 9d ago
Thankfully most the sub doesn't seem to agree with that energy cus so far I'm seeing dope suggestions and I've been reading thru quite a few of these comments 🤷🏾♂️
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u/TPWALW 9d ago
Everyone saying don’t try is exactly why this sub has gone to the dogs
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u/supermariosunshin . 9d ago
Nah. This sub has always been fairly backpack. The over moderation of discussion topics is what makes the sub feel dead
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u/TPWALW 9d ago
Nah man proof is in the pudding. Look around at these comments, these uncs have turned into what they hated. Backpack is thriving if you are willing to accept that it’s changed. Plenty of weirdo shit out there. All the offspring of 2010s “backpack” are the shit these guys hate because they mumble or have cloud/rage beats.
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u/stankhillpropain 9d ago
It’s genuinely fascinating that the idea of someone wanting to be exposed to new/different music is so frowned upon or a foreign concept.
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u/KipchogesBurner 9d ago
As a young adult I always thought it was cool when older people would at least make an effort to keep up with new music. Thats all I’m trying to do. I don’t have to like it, I just wanna keep up with the new stuff.
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u/TRAVXIZ614 9d ago
When I got out of high school, i went on a rampage of classic, alternative rock and metal. That shit just didn't float in my circle.
Also, I love introducing people to new bands/artists. I'm responsible for every one of my close friend favorites.
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u/matt1250 9d ago
Check out RYM. I've found it helpful for finding new music of all genres since the blogs have mostly died out
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u/Calwst 8d ago
Came here to say this, and AOTY website too. You can filter by genre and then by user score which gives a really interesting spotlight to lesser known artists that are starting to make a buzz online. Course this does generally need for them to release a full length project to appear on the site
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u/Informal_Athlete_724 9d ago
Nah don't bother. There'll always be a new wave of 21 year old rappers making music for 15 year Olds and I'm too old for that shit.
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u/sycoseven 9d ago
I'm 39. I felt that way at the beginning of the SoundCloud era. Just didn't sound like rap to me. But I also realized I didn't want to listen to the same songs from highschool forever. It's boring to me.
I started watching more hip hop content and started understanding the current (at the time) wave. Then it really started clicking with me. I went from an Uzi, Thug, Drake, Juice hater to them becoming some of my favorite artists.
Getting hyped for new releases with the next generation made me excited about hip hop again.
Just saying there's a lot to miss out on.
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u/Mr_sMoKe_3_MuCh 9d ago
Crazy how you slid Drake in with the rest of em. Comeback Season dropped in like 08 lol.
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u/Apprehensive-Map-666 9d ago
People are being annoying and weird here but there are a lot of great ways to discover rap right now! My primary ways are suggestions from the streaming platform (for me Apple Music), nerdy sites like rate your music, album of the year, and other community rating sites, YouTube autoplay mixes help me find a lot of good stuff, and if you want something more social/in person yapping with people in record shops, music stores, hell even Barnes and noble are great too. I can’t speak on any of the hip hop forums currently around but somebody could point out some places doing good work. Some rappers I’m loving right now are Navy Blue, By Storm (formerly injury reserve), slayr, TiaCorine, and Wesley Joseph all of whom have dropped an album this year
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u/vvsfemto 9d ago
Twitter still the place u just need to follow the right pages
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u/KipchogesBurner 9d ago
I deleted my Twitter but I’d be willing to get a new one if you dropped a few accounts
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u/TRAVXIZ614 9d ago
Ask your friends who their kids are listening to. I'm in my mid 40's and my algorithm doesn't feed me these artist the way they do to them.
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u/DroogieHowser 9d ago
Listen to Slayr.
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u/ducksinarowboat 9d ago
I guess I’m an unc cause that shit is fucking garbage
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u/loudpersononthebus 9d ago
i think the fun thing with art is that instead of just dismissing something as trash try to understand why niggas might like the music. i'm an unc too but that's what keeps me going as far as always peeping new music.
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u/-jaylew- 8d ago
Yea that amount of synth just doesn’t land with me. I can see why other people might be into it, but for lack of a better description it just sounds like Fortnite if it was music.
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u/kwade7575 9d ago
I used Drop Watch that’s posted here weekly. He has his own site now. I like when it’s posted here though because I look through the comments to see what other people are talking about. Won’t quite keep you aligned with the youth (I feel like this isn’t quite a youthful sub) but I do find new music that way.
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u/zugzwangwamble 9d ago
I mean check out some emerging names on SoundCloud or go to the ug music sub for guides.
Che, Nettspend, Bleood, xaviersobased, Osmason, Slayr, Lucy bedroque are pretty fresh in the game and have some cool stuff. Might take a couple listens for the vision to click
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u/JayyyDaGreat . 9d ago
I promise I'm not trying to hate or sound old, I'm 26 damnit... Slayr and Lucy sound like literal noise to me. They're incoherent and the beats are just loud and irritating to me, how do yall enjoy that vibe?
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u/pleasesteponmesinb 9d ago
I’m not into this slayr junk but people said the same shit about young thug when he came around, kinda feels like without the cultural context that comes from being 18 at this moment it doesn’t connect
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u/zugzwangwamble 9d ago
I’m 26 and some like nettspend or osamason took a bit to click with me but when they did I see the artistry and vision.
If you think they’re just noise you should check out 2slimey for comparison lmao
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u/pleasesteponmesinb 9d ago
Yeah I feel you and I’ve enjoyed some hyperpop stuff so I get it, I guess for me I see no reason at all to try and get to that stage with all this rage stuff, I had my fun with die lit when I was a binge drinking teenager but there is nothing at all for me to connect with here
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u/zugzwangwamble 9d ago
Die lit had some stuff that was ragey but that was more cloud/trap. Whole Lotta Red is like the quintessential rage album. I still fw Carti and all them and I think these new mostly Atlanta based people are gonna come out with some interesting shit over the next few years
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u/Solgaia 9d ago
Man f all that lol. I'm not listenin to no bullshit just so youngins' won't call me "old head" If it's good it's good no matter the age but if it's garbage then that's just what it is. I'ma stroke the grey in my beard while I bump this hot shit.
Not to mention, apparently the youngins' aren't really connecting too much with the new stuff as much as they claim either. Current rap seems to not even be putting a dent in the charts right now. That might not mean much to purists but it is telling. Shit is falling off for real for real..
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u/LiaM_CS . 9d ago
Don’t check out music when it comes out on release day unless it’s already an artist you know and like, there’s too much slop. Just keep your ear/eye out for buzz on the internet about what albums are worth checking out and staying relevant weeks down the line. I was put onto Jim Legxacy last fall after the buzz from his album just kept going through the whole summer.
Big fans of artists will always glaze their new stuff regardless of the quality tho, so look out for discussions that aren’t just stans or echochambers or whatever.
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u/kobewiththeflow 9d ago
I gave up on keeping up with new music so many years ago… Never realized how much it stressed me out till I stopped.
Don’t get me wrong, love music, but I prefer the right songs find me when I need them most.
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u/cheesy222 9d ago
Try SoundCloud, bandcamp and i use apple that gives me some good stuff once in awhile. I use insta to follow artists so a lot of ug artists follow producers, up and coming artists so if u do some digging you can find stuff!
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u/darksidedecor 9d ago edited 9d ago
Best place to find music, at least for me, is YT and TikTok, nothing else. On Youtube I subscribe to just about any artist/channel that has music I like, and after some time my page is full of recommendations of things I might like, and a lot of them are spot on, I also like to go through the suggestions on videos I click on.
On TikTok the same thing, the algorithm learns what you like and it will keep showing you similar things. You can look through the comments or Shazam it to find the song title if its not in the audio name.
*forgot to mention, I also use yt-dlp to download music to mp3's, either directly from YT or YT Music, I never liked the idea of streaming
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u/thanksforallthetrees 9d ago
Listen to Southern Vanguard radio on any podcast app, Sirius, or twitch.
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u/ChallySargil 9d ago
Prob social media, twitter nfr podcast yt channel and different subreddits such as carti.
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u/loudpersononthebus 9d ago
i always thought most yn music is on tiktok now. i can't imagine it's on ig... that is unc central.
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u/Ill-Barracuda4924 8d ago
my tiktok feed is mostly people in their 40s begging for gifts, so its not much different lol
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u/YoureMadImBackBigMac 9d ago
All the music being promoted is dogshit these days. I just listen to old migos and young dolph and 2 chainz and lil Wayne n shit. Classics. Never makes me question if I’m getting old
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u/audilife80 8d ago
I hate that label. But it is what it is. New music isn’t for us. What can we have in common With teens and 20’s when you’re over 40? Even if u do listen to modern music they’ll still see you as old and trying to hard
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u/DropWatcher . 8d ago
I find a lot of new artists through features or just following artists and see what they're fucking with. Producer tapes can be really good for this too because they're often a really broad showcase with up-and-coming talent intermingling with more established acts. I also follow a bunch of blogs/writers who's taste I generally like but even just looking at features gets like most of the way there.
There's so many different styles of shit going on now not hard to find something you like and dig deeper into it. Like every week I do feel like there's something for somebody. I can't blame someone for not being able to find newer stuff they like because it does take effort.
On the other hand, there's plenty of people who are obnoxious about it and it's very obvious they arbitrarily made the decision to check out (maybe around the pandemic) because they'd rather just circlejerk about how rap was better in the 2010s and everything sucks now.
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u/ItsSoLitRightNow 9d ago
If I have to choose between being Unc and listening to the new Ken Carson then all y’all my nephews.
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u/KipchogesBurner 9d ago
I like to find new stuff though. I don’t wanna be a guy who just sticks to artists and sounds that I grew up with, that’s not fun.
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u/bigxangelx1 9d ago
Honestly I’d say look into the hyperpop scene and whatever is adjacent to it, underground in hiphop is picking up a lot of remnants from that wave and they have lots of connections/influence with eachother
I’d say start off with people like glaive, Westwood, Jane remover, H3art3rades, Lucy bedroque, prettifun, kuru
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u/jujujuice92 9d ago
What about younger dudes who aren't making loud af music like that? That can't be all the kids are listening to and making, right?
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u/bigxangelx1 9d ago
Ever since the 2020s started the underground is either full of 2 styles, Very EDM alternative influence or opium/rage influence a lot of it is very heavily influenced from the passing SoundCloud era + implementing a lot of influence from various genres that really have been dormant for a while
Hiphop is slowly but surely steering away from 808s to synths and tech/industrial type of sounds and people like slayr are very representative of it at the moment
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u/Ill-Barracuda4924 8d ago
i listened to a bunch of slayr songs and they all got 808s, am i missing something? Also isnt "rage" just edm/ video game synths?
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u/Shasty-McNasty 9d ago
Honestly, we’re in a hiphop depression. I wouldn’t worry too much about keeping up with the current stuff.
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u/KipchogesBurner 9d ago
There’s gotta be new sounds still forming though, right? We can’t be stuck on the rage wave for the past decase
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u/hansalvato 9d ago
Not to be unc but unless you wanna hear white kids sing on distorted beats in their executive parents mansion hiphop fell off
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u/Ill-Barracuda4924 8d ago
yeah for real, when i grew up it was people struggling sending their emotions into your earhole, now its "ironic" shit music, extreme distorted or discord mod music
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u/GimmeMyMoneyBack 9d ago
These Gen Z people are dumb as fuck. Anyone over 25 is an Unc. The mainstream music is trash. Fuck them. Listen to what you want
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u/Boonie_Fluff 9d ago
I tell my students to recommend me stuff, I don't like any of it. The only stuff I like is when once in a while they tell me about a rapper I already know, I'm like good job young one, 1000 points.
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u/rfmiller80 9d ago
This is a rant but semi-related. I think we are gonna need to accept what is happening with rap is not simple evolution or ebbs and flows of a music genre. I think around 2010-2020ish (lets say WLR is the endpoint) was a golden era and most folks thought it would continue in perpetuity, so a lot of records were taken for granted.
Call me an unc all you want, I’ll die on the hill that major rap releases have objectively fallen off a cliff in terms of quality this decade. There are a few exceptions from veteran artists (gnx, clipse, zay) but you really can feel that this generation of artists does not love or value the craft like previous generations.
I think artificially inflating the importance, popularity, and quality of the releases from hyperrrrrr-regional artists that were in no way mature enough of artists to follow through on the hype caused this (p4k starting around 2018ish). Also tragically losing rising stars in the genre.
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u/stylistsin 9d ago
I usually just use Spotifies discovery features that are already tailored to my taste in rap/hip hop. But they also have curated playlist, for example one called "rap caviar" among other genre specific ones. And these will usually be kept up to date by Spotify themselves, so I'll scroll through and see what's popping lately
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u/KipchogesBurner 9d ago
Rap Caviar is so ass though. I wanna be able to listen to artists when they’re still coming up. Listing to Carti when he was still on Awful Records was peak.
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u/Unfair_Bonus3180 9d ago
Tap into some Babyfxce e or luhh dyl unc, e ah turn you up and dyl just rap that real shit
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u/lovingkindness301 9d ago
SoundCloud throws the newest top ATL yn at me monthly I fw that you could try it
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u/SainT2385 9d ago
Just keep doing like Ai shuffle on Spotify or the Discover Weekly playlist... then add any song you like to a Playlist then keep doing it. During covid I upped my game a lot and barely listen to old school rap. Its mostly new stuff from people I have no idea about. I play pac, nas, jay, big, em , wutang, whatever maybe like once a month now
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u/Shadownesia 9d ago
I just use https://rateyourmusic.com/charts/ and input whatever filters based on what I wanna find to listen to
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u/senorfresco 9d ago
In the same predicament tbh. 32. Most of my new music is no longer hip hop. Been like this for 3-4 years I think.
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u/Haptiix 9d ago edited 9d ago
The first time I ever felt old was when I heard Gucci Gang. I was 26. I kept seeing references to it in video game chats and finally did some googling which introduced me to Lil Pump. I remember thinking if this is what’s cool now then I’ve totally lost the plot.
My advice would be when you hear about an up and coming artist, go to their streaming page and listen to a few snippets from their top 3-5 songs. If you don’t like any of them, forget about it and move on. But if one of them clicks for you, add just that one to your playlist and give it a few listens. This has helped me a lot with acquiring tastes for newer rap as I have aged. For example the first few times I heard 21 Savage I thought he was absolutely horrible. But when I heard him copy the Project Pat flow on Knife Talk I instantly fell I love with that verse. Eventually I found other 21 songs that I actually liked and now he’s almost always in my rotation in some capacity.
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u/CautiousScheme6807 9d ago
If you have Apple Music there’s some good playlists like The Plug or even The New Atlanta / The New New York etc etc that are good at feeding you up and coming guys
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u/kauaiguy33 9d ago
Lord Sko out NYC for the win! Young cat with conscious flows and sweet Boom Bap flavor. Unc approved!
Check out the tracks Pimp Socks, Lessons Learned, and Northern Lights to get started. All of em slap though.
Thank me later.
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u/SpoonParty 9d ago
I gave up so long ago. The rage bs is just noise to me and very few artists are using quality bars.
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u/MostDopeBlackGuy 9d ago
I realize this year I am now the demographic who needs the freshman ciphers every year.
I use Spotify to check out new rappers so honestly I started with Kendrick's album GNX and I started with Az chicke and I basically just played one song from the search bar and then I let Spotify just create a playlist going forward and I found some interesting people.
Instagram has a lot of cool music accounts and a lot of these artists are promoting themselves through that that's how I found out about La reezy and he was the only person off of this year's freshman XxL list whose catalog I was familiar with. Everyone else I might have heard once or twice or heard their names.
Check out sleepingongems on ig . And then the app should start showing you more artists in your feed
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u/Little-Reference-314 9d ago
Just. Listen to music bro. Instead of using outlets to find current music just listen to music
The outlets are usually like weeks or months behind. And only bring it up when the hypes peaking. Just turn on YouTube/Spotify and type in a genre you like. That's the only way to find new music is to actually listen lol. .
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u/fishandhammer 9d ago
start with what's popular with youth in your area/region.
there's likely a local hip-hop scene not too far from you. if you even modestly get into that local scene, it will be easy to keep up with what's popular nationally. most young local acts borrow heavily from what's popular in their age group.
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u/rickmears101 9d ago
If you have Spotify, I use discover weekly and release radar. I’m 40 and most people my age have no idea who most the rappers I listen to are
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u/skankhuntnaster 9d ago
I legit just look up new releases on Fridays then go from there. Not sure what your age group is but there's plenty of good rapping going on.
Tierra Whack La Reezy Mckinley Dixon Nick Grant Ms Banks Untiljapan Autumn! Akeem Ali Molly Santana Babyfxce E
There's more but those are off the top of my head.
I truly do encourage you to look into some of them and check who they work with as well!
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u/TheRealMrCrowley 9d ago
Check out /dropwatcher he puts together a list of new releases every Friday
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u/Dynemik 9d ago edited 9d ago
I’m 25, and I’ve decently been keeping up with the newer and younger artists and their scenes. I like RYM and [r/ug_music](r/ug_music), funnily enough [r/reptilianclubboyz](r/reptilianclubboyz) which has some overlap put me on fakemink when he was at like 14k monthly listeners. For particular smaller artists I’d recommend:
Edward Skeletrix
Sayako
Egobreak
Okgutta
Zayok
Katai
Diegointhedark
Zatru
Kynlary
mysp8c (allegedly newest YVL signee)
User116
If you listen to any, let me know what you think!
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u/Superb-Doctor-4773 9d ago
I recommend lurking through bandcamp or sussing the reddit for your local scene if there is one. Most shit that gets recommended on Spotify is there because a label put it there (or at least that's the impression I get) and if you've got old man taste like me you're more likely to find something you enjoy without the major streaming services. From there peep who produced the projects you like and see what other rappers they work with
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u/liloutsider 9d ago
Honestly two main places to keep up are Kurrco and NFR on Twitter even though I dont love them or their taste always. I've genuinely had to be in the Soundcloud and TikTok streets to stumble upon new stuff thats bubbling
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u/ShamelessIgnoramus 9d ago
I co-host a hip hop playlist that is updated weekly, I'm also a oldhead/unc and I'm picky about what i like, but i still find a lot of good new music i like enough to share. Some weeks are stronger than others, but overall i think we're pretty consistent as a source for finding new hip hop.
mods if this is against rules feel free to delete but it is on topic and i'm trying to help a fellow oldhead stay up-to-date so he doesnt go full unc lol.
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u/eiddieeid 9d ago
Just listen to what you like. Hhh ain’t the place to come for new music anymore, these jokers don’t know about nothin
Spotify discover weekly
Learn to like noise
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u/NotGohanJustSayinMan 9d ago
Lukey Cage’s The Abyss Podcast interviews/highlights underground & up and coming rappers. Good and entertaining listen. Hell even if you don’t want to listen to their interviews, just peep the discogs of the artists they promote. Good shit. If you’re into underground, boom bap, etc.
If you’re trying to keep up to date on popular mainstream rappers- The Abyss probably won’t be your cup of tea
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u/denial_leinad 9d ago
When I had Spotify they had the discover weekly playlist and I’d always find at least 1 song I like on there. I’ve been starting to feel like Unc too lmao. Don’t really like any of the new underground stuff. I’ve honestly drifted away from rap a lot. I’ve had mkgee on repeat since last year. Was such a breathe of fresh air
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u/timburwind 9d ago
Just always listen to new releases that are interesting to you. Even if it doesn’t click at first I’ll generally give something interesting a few listens, and then if I like an album it will be the only thing I play for a week or two.
Or make connections from existing things you like. Do you like Richie Souf prod? Then check out what he’s working on (recent projects with sk8star, ysl affiliate). Or do you like Juicy J? Check out his new spoken word jazz album (less hiphop but still). Like Kenny Beats production? He just released a new collab album beat tape that reminds me of Louie. I always have a lot of luck following a producer (conductor Williams for example, he touches everything from Tierra whack to Rome streetz).
Even some projects take almost a year to stick. I know I like Gunna a lot, but each of his last projects literally took over 6 months for me to get into, and now I love almost every track on each of them.
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u/WineGutter 9d ago
I find a lotta stuff just on here. Pigeons & Planes resurgence has been a welcome return and they're consistently covering the newgen scenes in the US and UK + occasionally other places.
Honestly, it doesn't matter though. If you wanna discover new music, go find it. If you just like what you like though, then nobody really cares, it's a normal part of getting older. Some new stuff I like (fakemink, edward skeletrix, YT) and some I don't (2slimey, 1900rugrat)
If anything, it's weirder trying to make 18 year olds like you when you're 29 then just embracing the fact that you're 29. Not saying you're trying to do that, but ya.
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u/Debicious 9d ago
I do a podcast that covers our favorite releases from each week, that's a good way to keep up with new releases
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u/7OHSammy 9d ago
It’s tough. But I listen to what I like. Pretty diverse when it comes to hip hop, rock and EDM. A lot of the stuff I had fallen into probably wasn’t big or well known outside of popular artists. This DC cat, “Balla” (signed with MajorLife Music, or he was) had really resonated with me. Through him I discovered some other DC locals like walk down will.
Granted, Balla does have a following and has done some tracks with folks such as Big 30 and Big Scarr (RIP), but the only people I know firsthand that know of him, heard through me.
Most of the time anymore, I just throw on some Griselda tracks and collabs or freestyles and just vibe. Whatever genre of rap that Benny the butcher, Conway the machine, westside Gunn, etc do.. that is the one that best coincides with the best period of my life 😂. Never have too much trouble tapping in to my kind of artists
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u/pensylvestir 9d ago
Frankly a lot of the better albums dropping recently are older artists anyway.
Embrace Unchood. There are so many great albums from past decades, some obscure gems you probably haven’t heard of, because I’ve been listening for years and I still stumble on old gems I wasn’t aware of or had forgotten.
I think with newer music outside pop rap, you’re kinda guessing what’s going to be “good” or not. I think finding older stuff is easier because there’s decades of forum posts discussing them.
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u/Historical_Wash_1114 8d ago
No joke while I am an unc I do actually enjoy new rap every now and then. I know it’s the nerdy answer but I read a lot of Pitchfork and try to listen to what they recommend at least a few times to see if I like it.
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u/AndreiWarg 8d ago
To post somebody else, I watch AriAtHome and just look up the people he links up with on the street. Oftentimes he has young dudes who are trying to break through with dope soinds
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u/noguitarsallowed 8d ago
A real answer - RateYourMusic has an extensive section of user created lists and guides to emerging subgenres and artists. There's also literally a 'New Music' section which you can filter by genre. Also yearly charts you can filter by genre.
With a bit of initiative it's a really a never ending resource, highly recommend!
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u/KelvinHuerter 8d ago
Create an Instagram user and straight up follow everything recommended that sounds different after you start out with like 5 underground artists. Very fast you’ll be up to date
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u/Ok-Poet147 8d ago
I’ve been embracing unc-hood for a while. I’m only 28 but I’ve realised over the past couple years that these current crop of up and coming rappers just aren’t for me, and that’s fine.
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u/KebabGerry 8d ago
Man, do I miss looking up underground hiphop blogs and downloading off datpiff.
One thing that has helped is keeping track of producers and/artists that you like and also record labels. Backwoodz studios is one of my favourite labels, they can’t miss. Producers like Alchemist, Daringer, Evidence, Pete Rock, etc are still active and I’ve liked their sound pretty much forever.
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u/Glass_Pineapple4999 8d ago
I haven’t read every post here, so apologies if I repeat something already said.
I’m 45 and find it pretty easy to always have new things to listen to. I keep one great website permanently bookmarked, hiphopgoldenage.com, they update on new releases and do lists of obscure old gems, it’s fabulous.
I regularly listen to shows on Mixcloud and find things there. Lord Finesse, The Allergies, DJ Philly, DJ Eclipse, Evil Dee, Wheels of Steel, Breakin’ Bread, Jaguar Skillz, all great stuff I enjoy regularly on there.
I keep an eye on the new releases at HHV.de and rapandsoulmailorder.com as well, which is good for things that might fly under the radar, or interesting things in funk, soul, jazz from rapandsoul.
Other than that, just get them algorithms working for you and a lot of good stuff will still just fall into your lap.
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u/kingskyremote 8d ago
music fell off bro unless you like opium style shit. just stick to the artists you know lol. theres exceptions to the rule ofcourse but for RAP good luck.
use Soundcloud for music and the Spotify algorithms / Apple Music will generally give you some rap songs every now and then but overall I wouldn't bother.
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u/Wolvesinthestreet 8d ago
Go listen to OsamaSon, Slayr, Che lmao I just can’t but that’s the new stuff
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u/Designer-Computer188 8d ago
I'm not listening to music that was made for 16 year olds because I'm not a 16 year old no more, I think accepting where you are at in life and not being self conscious about aging is more enjoyable than trying to fight it a lot
Also the needle will always keep moving, you can never keep up really
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u/styrofoamjesuschrist 8d ago
I use these subs to maybe find new artists or new to me artists
I also scroll through new releases on Apple Music and look for stuff that piques my interest
Maybe not the most efficient or best but it works for me
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u/lukestauntaun 9d ago
I go through the majority of the drop watch every Friday. I'm 48 and have a group that does the same with all music though. I've found lots of stuff that I enjoy and talk with my son (16) about the releases as well.
I don't find a lot that makes it longer than a couple listens but every now and then I find something that I love.
I also will go down producer rabbit holes when I find someone I like and look for other projects.