The Cut: Donte Thomas can ease you back into the post Thanksgiving grind

 


I really fucking hate Mondays. I really really really fucking hate Mondays that follow a holiday.

It's almost like I've completely rebooted and forgot how to do my job or function as well as I did before the holiday. Most of the time, the first day back is a wash and I mostly lurk on Twitter or Youtube while my boss isn't looking (luckily, we're working from home now so I don't have to try too hard.)

Luckily, we have rappers like Donte Thomas to get our asses back on track.  Hailing from Portland, Thomas has been hustling for a minute and is even the founder of Produce Organics, an independent art collective music label. 

Thomas specializes in smooth lo-fi boom bap that harkens back to the artists that established the genre in the 90's. But to compare Thomas to those before him would be lazy (I don't like comparing artists to other artists if you haven't noticed).

This is not hype music, though Thomas has plenty of bars on hand, this is self reflexive music. Themes like loneliness and depression and handling newfound fame play key roles in his music - especially his latest offering "how you like them APPLES?" That being said, like I noted before, it's not all sad music and Thomas is just as skilled in rhyme spitting as he is in story telling.

Speaking of his latest project, sonically this sounds like a jazz album someone decided to rap over. Trumpets, pianos and numb drum beat carry the listener through the ten track effort. It's the perfect sound to get you back into the swing of things without hitting you over the head with hype.

With just three projects under his belt, Thomas has a long way to go to break into the national conversation. However in time, I'm willing to bet that he will one of rap's next cult icons.

Check him out below:


and


and



Check out his latest project below:

https://music.apple.com/us/album/how-you-like-them-apples/1541195703

Let me know what you think,
Lux

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