E-Newt – Tragically Beautiful
E-Newt – Tragically Beautiful – EP Review
“I give the nation hope.”
Giant claim there homie…but maybe E-Newt ain’t wrong either.
Some of that good-good conscious Hip-Hop comin’ atcha on the latest EP from this skillful rapper. You know…in that vein of Common, Talib, Mos & more…E-Newt brings knowledge to the m-i-c, along with high doses of talent, insight, and a genuinely natural flow that’s bound to appeal to many of y’all out there. Guy’s confident…and I dig that…from everything I’ve heard here, he’s got every reason to be.
“Now the legend is woke.”
And here we are, in the thick of authentically solid rhymes on Tragically Beautiful within moments of E-Newt spittin’ his thoughts on “Unknown” as the record begins. Seriously enticing beat & music alongside him here…not only is the man on the mic entertaining AF, but the minimalist design of the sounds surrounding him are sheer perfection, allowing every word to get across as clear as day for ya. He’s got a “legacy of the future G.O.A.T.” in the works potentially at stake as far as E-Newt’s concerned – and it’s safe to say from a line like that you can assume that you’re hearing him bring his A-game to the full set-list of songs on the Tragically Beautiful EP. Real strength in the balance here between what the main star of the show brings to the mic and the music – “Unknown” is a solid example of everything coming together exactly as you’d hope it would…there’s genuinely natural flow to everything you hear. If you were to ask me, I’d tell ya that’s the sound of true investment & interest in the material itself…the sound of an artist determined, hungry, and skilled enough to be present for every syllable spit; you can tell he’s feelin’ the vibe, and in turn, so are we. What I can tell ya, is this is what you WANT from an emcee…you want this kind of focus on the mic & the authentic thoughts that come along with it all – E-Newt establishes himself quickly with slick rhymes that slide right through your speakers with cleverly captivating sound, socially conscious lyrics & insightfully internal ones too – he gives your ears lots to listen to & your brain to chew on, making an impact from moment one on the Tragically Beautiful EP.
“I’m chef Ramsey x10 in the kitchen.”
That’s food for thought homies. This guy! I tell ya…there are tons of lines from these tracks you could happily quote from as a reviewer, and a ton of lines that I’m sure listeners will be copping from these cuts for their own personal use in their own daily lives too. I’ve never quite known how to describe the sound that comes along with “You’re There” or tracks out there in Hip-Hop that incorporate a similar vibe…is it theatrical? That doesn’t feel like it cuts it…but it’s like there’s a piece of an old TV-show theme-song that ends up forming the main sample…you can find this kind of style in a ton of Hip-Hop out there, I’ve just never known fully how to describe what I’m hearing…best I can say now perhaps, is that it’s become a genuinely classic vibe within the genre and one that is almost always guaranteed to catch attention. He’ll even drop some well-known references to artists like T-Pain and fairly obscure Pop-Culture references on ya – like the movie Pootie Tang will get referenced along the way through the words of “You’re There” – E-Newt’s maxin’ & relaxin’ in style and intensely focused when it comes to every single word he’s spittin.’ He’s equally chilled-out & driven at the same time…which ultimately makes an experience in listening to cuts like “You’re There” exceptionally cool really…he’s rockin’ with a completely loose vibe on the mic, but if you listen to the words & how they connect, move, and flow – you’ll know the focus never drops or dips for a single solitary second when he’s in the vocal-booth.
LISTEN to these bars on “Dreamville” will ya? This is how you bring it home on a three-track EP and make that memorable impact you want. The last thing I’d try to convince you of is that E-Newt’s been holding out on us so far to this point…he hasn’t been, he’ put in excellent performances already on the other two cuts…but that all being said, it’s also kinda undeniable that the stakes get raised here at the end on this final cut from the Tragically Beautiful EP. Not only does E-Newt drop rhymes, pivot, shift, and transition with the best of’em out there, using the pace & spacing of every syllable to his advantage & whatnot – but following his thought-process as these words coming flowing out at ya has been a genuinely rad experience from moment one on this record. “Dreamville” is a really smart & focused cut when it comes to the lyrics…E-Newt lays it much more on the line here and lets you get to know him in ways most don’t here…like you really find yourself on the inside of his thoughts here, thinkin’ along with him as he details what life is, what it ain’t, and what it could all potentially still be in the years to follow. The way he rolls & flows through this cut is a serious highlight – and listening to smart moves he makes, like how he subtly starts adding in more melody to the words or edge to the sound of his voice along the way, especially over the course of the last minute, shows just how forward-thinking E-Newt is when it comes to how he entertains ya. He’s not just considering the words on the page and in the writing, but also how to make them connect on the mic through the way he spits’em out – you feelin’ me? When it comes to “Dreamville” – E-Newt battles hard for the world he wants to live in as opposed to the one we all tend to get sucked into believing it is; it can be a much better place if we just believe in the possibility & potential that exists around us & within us…if we embrace our talents & what makes us special, and push the needle forward, exactly like this rapper is on this last cut here. This world can be what we make of it – it can be “Dreamville” if we want it to be & set our minds to it…and it’s artists like E-Newt that are clearly prepared to lead the way through a haze of smoke clouds towards that better tomorrow.
Find music from E-Newt at Spotify here: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6iQKh10Mn0H6WyzD95QBdr
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