As I have stated in a few of my previous posts, unfortunately, the music industry has seemed a little slow over the last few months. Every year, the beginning of the year typically does not have a ton of output from musicians, as people seem to not consume as much new content in the weeks following the holidays and start of a new year. Usually by now, though, the industry will kick into gear and there will have been a bunch of new albums that have come out. Don’t get me wrong, there have been a few records that have come out this year so far, but it is not like most years. I am assuming this slow pace of the industry is because of the Pandemic, as everything regarding media has just progressed more slowly over the last year. Fortunately, the music industry is starting to kick into gear now that we are into late March; well, at least it is here in Milwaukee. There has been a ton of good music coming out of Milwaukee over the last month or so. In this piece, I am focusing on some great Milwaukee Hip Hop that has recently been released. With that being said, please let me know in the comments if you enjoy any of these tracks as well, and please show me any songs from Milwaukee artists you love that I did not write about.

WAVE CHAPELLE – TRACK AND FIELD

I know that in the intro for this write up I talked about how most of the music industry has started 2021 very slow, but fortunately, that has not been the case for Wave Chapelle. This man has not stopped dropping music since this year started. He has stated he is releasing 52 tracks this year, with each month having a different color theme that bundles the music released that month into a little pack. In January, released 5 songs as a part of ‘The Red Pack,’ in February he released four songs as a part of ‘The Orange Pack,’ and in March he has released two songs so far as a part of ‘The Yellow Pack.’ Every song released by Wave Chapelle so far this year has been great, as each highlights his talents as a lyricist and ability to deliver a variety of flows. His latest single, ‘Track and Field,’ is a high-energy Trap track that has a mid-2010s Trap feeling to it; it reminds me of a lot of traps produced by Southside and Zaytoven back in the day. Wave Chapelle’s flow is super smooth on this track, and his confidence just oozed through on it. ‘Track and Field’ just goes hard in so many ways. If you love retro-sounding and energetic Trap music, this is a song you need to hear.

JE’LOVE – PRETTY LITTLE BEAST

Je’love is an artist that I have been excited to hear new music from ever since I discovered her last year after hearing the remix of her song ‘Ayo.’ This song is an extremely catchy R&B track, and it highlights Je’love’s vocal talents. Je’love has been pretty dormant since 2019, as she has been working on and honing her craft and getting ready to take things to the next level in 2021. Her newest release, Pretty Little Beast, is a 3 song mini EP that showcases all of her talents as an artist. The first two songs from the EP, ‘Loaded’ and ‘Gas Station,’ showcase Je’love’s talents as a rapper. Both of these songs go super hard, and both of them showcase her ability to use a variety of flows and styles of rapping. The third song, ‘Classy N’Rude,’ exhibits her abilities as a modern R&B artist. This song reminds me a lot of some of Doja Cat’s music. The chorus has a major Pop music sound and appeal, and the sing-rapping in the verses once again demonstrates another kind of rapping she can excel at. Je’love’s newest project, Pretty Little Beast, shows off many different ways that make her stand out as an up and coming Hip Hop artist, and it has something for all fans of Hip Hop music.

MAYYH3M FEAT. ELI $TONES – CATCH UP

One thing I have always appreciated about Mayyh3m’s music ever since I first heard him is how many different places he draws his influences from. If you go on his Spotify and listen to a bunch of random tracks, you will hear influences from Rock music, Alternative music, R&B music, and many different kinds of Hip Hop music. His latest track, ‘Catch Up’ which features Eli $tones, has an upbeat Emo-Trap feeling to it. The instrumental is a bit more alternative than a lot of other Emo-Trap, and it reminds me of some of Juice Wrld and Lil Peep’s more Rock-influenced tracks(RIP to both of those legends). I love the energy that Mayyh3m provides on this track. There is no way that this song would not pump you up On this song, Mayyh3m is proclaiming that he is ready to accelerate his journey to the top, and he is willing to do whatever it takes to get there. Eli $tones matches Mayyh3m’s energy with his feature on this track, demonstrating his rapid-fire flow and melodic tendencies in a fierce way. If you like high-energy Rock-tinted Trap music, this is a song you will enjoy.

KING MYLES – I SEE DEAD PEOPLE

After quite a long layoff, one of my favorite artists from the Milwaukee area is finally back. After not dropping any new music since his joint EP with Heyzeus released in the summer of 2020, King Myles is back to retake his throne at the top of the Milwaukee Hip Hop scene. His new single, ‘I See Dead People,’ is an excellent example of what makes him stand out among other rappers from the area. This track has a super dark and gritty Trap beat that has a bit of an underground quality to it. It reminds me a lot of the gloomy and creepy instrumentals that Kenny Beats used to make for rappers like KEY! and IDK when they were all coming up. ‘I See Dead People’ is full of King Myles’ signature rapid-fire flows that are very reminiscent of rappers like Machine Gun Kelly(at the beginning of his career) and Twista. ‘I See Dead People’ is also packed with witty wordplay. King Myles has that old-school Midwest style that Hip Hop heads should love. If you love lyrical Hip Hop or just love hard-hitting Trap music, ‘I See Dead People’ is a song you need to check out.

ELI $TONES – TRUTHFUL

The aspect about Eli $tones and his music that I am really into is how diverse of an artist he can be with his sound. It seems like he has an infinite amount of styles and flows he can pull from his arsenal; I never know what to expect going into an Eli $tones track. It is so cool how he can excel at so many kinds of Hip Hop music. I mean, the other performance of his on this list is nothing like Eli’s performance on his new song, ‘Truthful.’ This track reminds me a lot of Drake’s R&B music or some of DJ Luke Nasty’s music. I think that Eli $tones excels at this sound, and I would love to hear him explore it a lot more in the future. ‘Truthful’ has a very smooth and sensual sound that will put certain people in the mood when in the right setting. This track has a sort of old-school R&B Trap sound to it that reminds me of a lot of the music that was popular in the early 2010s. If you are a fan of melodic Trap music that has a distinct R&B quality, ‘Truthful’ by Eli $tones is a song you need to check out.

TROY TYLER – YOU AGAIN

Troy Tyler is an artist that has stood out from the pack ever since he first popped off back in 2017. He has a sound and style that is very retro, and his vocal talents have always stood out among a lot of current R&B music as well. His music brings me back to the music from my early childhood; everything about his voice and the instrumentals he uses is so reminiscent of the music by artists like Usher, Mario, and Omarion. His newest song, ‘You Again,’ follows this same style. The synths used to make the melody do sound more modern than some of his other melodies, but the tempo and overall sound of the song still do remind me a lot of early 2000s R&B music. Come to think of it, the thing that reminds me so much of that kind of music is his voice. His voice just gives me so much nostalgia. ‘You Again’ is a very sweet song where Troy Tyler is trying to convince his girl to fall in love with herself again. I love this notion he is promoting about loving yourself, and I wish it popped up more in Hip Hop music. If you are a fan of early 2000’s style R&B music or just love songs that are very uplifting, this is is a song you should check out.