Following up his St.Pete Hip Hop Classic Album “Strange Noize”, Zhudaru’s own Heyeyella shows no signs of slowing down on “Cloud Crown”.
The project starts out with the fun “Different Vybez” produced by Laz Beats. They teased this song awhile back when Heyeyella and Laz where putting in work at the Zhu. The video for this joint crafted by Smokeyperception takes you on a smoke filled journey through the Edge District.
Next up is “Steel Garden”. Lyrics wise this is one of the best songs Heyeyella has dropped to date. The way he flipped “Hardknock” on the hook was a dope take on a classic track. If Led Zeppelin made Hip Hop this is what it would sound like.
“Underworld Funk” is a song of the year contender. The first verse before the beat switch has us putting our faith in Yella. The beat switch hits at just the right time and we are met with a barrage of bars from Yella, until we are transported back to reality when the original beat returns. Def need a visual for this joint.
“Splash” is the anthem. You can turn up to this song or just chill out, reminds me of the type of music Wiz used to put out when I was a Jit. I can really see this one going viral with the right movement behind it. The beat switch up at the end featuring Black Selene takes the song up another notch.
“Mannerz Freestyle” will have you on grind mode. The banging beat compliments Yella’s spastic flow. Mackey Emannuel pulls up on the track to add some gravitas. Zhu shit!
“Drunken Master” has that dusty basement vibe to it. That horn in the background of the beat won’t hit you until repeat listens but it adds so much. I can see the whole crowd singing along to the chorus of this one. Really solid track, especially after back to back bangers.
“Wave Up” has a futuristic sound to it. Heyeyella got his wave up, brining him up to a higher frequency. Alec Burnright comes through for some water talk. I really dig the vibe of this track, and the feel good structure of it.
It was already going to be tough to meet the exceptions I had after “Strange Noize” reached Classic status. Honestly this project might even be better. The mash up of head knockers and feel good tracks, mixed in with god level songs like “Steel Garden” and “Underworld Funk” is the perfect balance. You definitely will be seeing this at the top of the EP of the year list.