From Kanye to Armani Jordan
My heart was crushed last year when I found out that Ye had been lying to us all of our lives. During a DrinkChamps interview, Kanye claimed that he posed as a “backpack rapper” or doesn’t even listen to that type of music. Now if you’re unfamiliar with the term, a “backpack rapper” is someone who raps about more serious subjects and stays away from rapping about what’s trendy at the moment. How could Ye say something like that when he single-handedly inspired a generation of “backpack rappers’’?
Return of Backpack Rap
Recently I discovered a rapper that was obviously inspired by that style and the greats who came before him, who goes by the name Armani Jordan. The thing that caught my eye about his music was his ability to make it feel like a melodramatic moment. Every song feels like a peek into his life.
Doing more research on him, I discovered that Armani has a background in the theater. This makes sense, because stylistically the structure of his lyrics felt professional. It’s like he’s telling a story from start to finish. He exemplified this in his July single, “The DEVIL IS REAL & you’re no angel”. Despite the title being long as hell, it’s a real ass song that tells a real ass story!
Couch Surfer
He effortlessly followed it up with his most recent single, “Sneak’s Couch Freestyle”. I love that he put his thorough storytelling on display for everyone to witness on this track. Armani Jordan goes into detail about what it was like going through the struggle and having to hop couch to couch to chase his dreams. No exaggeration when I say he goes into detail about how he got it out of the mud. He really gets into the nitty-gritty, which I appreciate.
More people need to understand that the journey as an independent artist is long and strenuous. But when you have someone who’s as talented as Armani Jordan, it’s only a matter of time ’til he’s bound to blow. It warms my spirit that we still have artists that have a positive, uplifting message in their music. This is impressive in a musical landscape that seems to be dominated by negativity.
Be sure to follow Armani Jordan on Instagram.
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