Through years of blatant and excessive music digging, a side effect is your ears become thirsty for more and more exclusivity. Yet, amongst the pack, there are those tunes employing old rules to glitter, and are always unbelievable and most appetising.

When it regards rap, especially, despite having to move fast with words, silence and tones are a major thing when it regards the flow. As a dancing tip; noticing spaces/silences allows to understand the flow and literally lets you groove to any kind of genres, even to those you hate.

Spaces are also widely used as ‘pauses’ in those practicing public speeches or among great conversationalists, as it’s said that a message is delivered more effectively in this way. In that same sense when it comes to rap, especially dutch rap that you may or may not be familiar with, it is not important of you to understand what the person says; you’ll already get the essential message by what the flow tells you.

There are tunes whose instrumentals are perfect yet the flow of the vocal could have been something more harmonious. in case of others, vocals are on point yet the instrumentals don’t quite quench the thirst. Then lastyl, there are the kinds of Ray Fuego.

From Netherlands with the album Zwart (translates to “Black”) dated back in 2018 this great project is recommended from the heart. Listening through this is a russian doll experience, where the more you listen, various layers of styles and moods are unveiled throughout this aural expedition. The ablum’s style-spectrum takes from hard-hitting rap (with Bad September, 2206, Doekoedoekoe) and goes even onto alternative/soft rock notably with the ending of Houthakker and the last track and album-closure with Ik Leen Niet.

Ik Leen Niet is the one track on this album dedicated to a loved interest, which sings about stealing one’s heart instead of begging in borrowing it.

Ray fuego started as a local rapper with his long-standing partners in crime, GRGY and KC, on early projects such as the Bummy Boys and more. The project kickstarted when the artists all met through each other, as they were all three living in a radius of 2kms. Their collaboration lately brought a year following ‘Zwart’, their release of the 10-tracked album Bummy Boys3.

Fuego is also the first rapper to have enrolled under the umbrella of the SMIB collective, which is a worldwide group curating rap artists and is also invested and spearheads their own line of apparel SMIB and SUMIBU.

chase these following links for more apparel information; SMIB – SUMIBU.

Unbelievably, Ray Fuego is a multi-versed artist of another total polarity. In addition of his career as a rapper, he is also the lead-vocalist of Ploegendienst, which is a punk band of his creation. After listening to his punk-genre works, it’s hard not to notice the high-noted difference in the scope of his voice. It would be very difficult to imagine only one person is behind the mic on both projects.

The artist’s lyrics are engaged in realities that Black people face from the state, police and justice.

You can comfortably listen to the album ‘Zwart‘ in full on Spotify, as well as Ray Fuego’s other exciting works. You can also purchase it on Amazon over here.