I am surely not the only who has been caught unawares by New York rapper Papoose’s latest work. After his first studio album, The Nacirema Dream, was delayed, I somehow stopped hearing news about Papoose (even though he was keeping busy putting out at least 29 self-released mixtapes). Papoose’s You Can’t Stop Destiny has been out for a few months and is definitely worth a listen.
I really got into Papoose when I was a teenager and he was dropping his Law Library tracks, which is now a full mixtape in its own right. I used to listen to them while shooting hoops in the front yard, which is pretty fitting now as Papoose just dropped a DJ Premier produced track, Hold The City Down, that will appear on the NBA 2K16 soundtrack. The soundtrack has been put together by DJ Mustard, DJ Khaled and Premier – look out for the full OST to drop soon.
Papoose and Premier have always put their city first and this song is no different; it’s New York hip hop in all its glory. Papoose comes with that gritty New York flow made famous by Jay-Z and Big L, and Premier brings that boom bap style with his signature scratching.
Check out the track below.