A.K.A KOBI "AMERICAN EGO$" REVIEW

Listen to Paul’s interview with A.K.A. Kobi on our Patreon.

As I am writing this piece, it is way overdue. Hell, even a week before putting my hands on the keys for this article; it’s overdue. What A.K.A Kobi has done with his newest release “American Ego$” demands timely credit when it’s due, and it’s quite past due.
A transplant from various parts of the East Coast, A.K.A Kobi has brought a certain energy and style that throws a proverbial refresher in the culture of our local music scene. With a heavy, but crisp cadence, Kobi hits you with dense lyrics that at times provoke a sense of emotion and thought all while having a new-generation East Coast feel with a little sprinkle of the old school.
A.K.A Kobi came close to home for this project- literally. My brother and founder of Minnesota Cold and Good Company produced a majority of the instrumentals on the project. A.K.A Kobi does double time in energy and cadence in contrast to the vintage-rich samples and slow, slugging drum kits that is a signature of my homie’s sound. With further production from Stix, Half, and K. Tonez (who also appears as the only feature on the project) A.K.A Kobi blends a subtle mix of two styles of sound and ties it all together with an impeccable vocal performance and even better substance.
Along with one of my favorite cover arts this year, A.K.A Kobi has one of the top projects out of the area this year; but let's get into these tracks without further delay:
Over welcoming and spiritual vocal samples paired with those slow sluggin’ drums, Kobi begins with bars that embody his intention with “American Ego$.” Kobi begins “Big Daddy” with the line:

”I can make a dollar out of doubt.
I can make a meal out of famine.”

Looking at the line in respect to the album; Kobi exemplifies American survival by way of relentless determination and confidence. The projects subtitle suggest, “Make the $truggle look good.” To survive in this America, you need an ego of “making something out of nothing.” The first lines of the album sum up the intention and the message “American Ego$” is resonating outwards.
“B.A.G.G.Y” provides a west coast low down instrumental, with smooth, but prevalent bass and classic keystrokes to accent, Kobi paints a picture of his past as a nomadic preteen watching his mom work and move to pave the way and make life better for her family. During a seamless and punctual beat switch Kobi sums up essence of the second tack with the bars:

“We ain’t had a Fendi/
We ain’t had a Louis/
Just a pair baggy clothes/
And everything was Gucci.”

Not only is this an endearing statement, it alludes to earlier in the track where Kobi’s family spends their last few bucks on laundry. This track is one of my favorites as far as depth from the sound to the title and the story it portrays.
“$cam” has a different direction sound-wise from the opening tracks. The soft, but noir-like sound is married with Kobi’s lightly auto-tuned melodies. “$cam” is a lesson about the irony of get-rich-quick schemes seemingly scheming you in the end. It’s a dangerous game of hustle, whether illegal or not, in America. You can lose what you worked hard for in an instant.
“Chow Hall” is on some Flying Lotus graveyard rap. The sinister piano riff and the low, menacing synth make a feeding ground for A.K.A Kobi as he pulls no punches in the bars he delivers like:

“Escape from the dog food/
But we don’t know it’s harmful/
Can’t stomach it, it’s awful/
Force fed a n***a/
When I’m all full.”

Kobi’s rhyme scheme is delivered with the commentary of second class citizens getting second class nutrition and sustenance. Families and communities in poverty are force fed the proverbial dog food when there’s healthier options, but cannot afford the steep price.
With hypnotizing guitar samples and bare bone percussion “Shundown” has a different aura than the preceding track, and gives A.K.A Kobi a lane to connect and speak about the culture and history of sundown towns. Kobi has some of the biggest lines in the album as he speaks on segregation and the dangerous life of a black American surviving through a systematically racist culture and subcultures:

“Black History’s a mystery/
We ain’t even Black, with that attached to ethnicity/
That’s attacking us literally.
Can’t even have a cookout/
Why the fuck are you grilling me?

This track comes in as one of my favorites in the album. The overall atmosphere paired with the essential rhetoric and history Kobi’s shares makes this one of the most complete songs on the project.
From hiding in fear at sundown, A.K.A Kobi emerges from the dark in “Lead Showers.” This track is Kobi’s call to arms. The hook is the main focus of the song as it persuades achieving power through war. “Ain’t the way to do it, but that's the way we get ours” describes the reluctance to do the dirty work of class warfare, but the overall necessity of it.
Kobi supplies an ode to the labor of rhyming over the airy and lofty instrumental on “Spitta” right into a 3-track vignette dedicated to discussion of women and love. “Ho’ Tales” begins like a fairytale but leads to a cautionary tale of having loose sexual tendencies while “Shea” turns a brighter corner with a lovely ode to the exceptional beauty of a black woman. “Break Silence” acts a serenade with Kobi and K. Tonez’s charming and melodic set up a rendezvous with a certain woman.
“Groovy’s” is the final act of the album. Those easy, charmingly drunk drums and keys give Kobi a pleasant bow out to the album. Kobi doesn’t keep pleasantries though as he ends the album as strong as he started.
As the year is coming to a close, we will be wrapping up the year talking about some of our favorite projects to come out, “American Ego$” will be in that discussion.

Check out “American Ego$” on all streaming platforms here:

Listen to Paul’s interview with A.K.A. Kobi on our Patreon.

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Review by: Paul Thorson, Hip-Hop Writer @PaulyT03
Edited by: Andrew Perrizo, Owner @PlaylistTC