Pretoria, depending on which side of the culture fence you stand, is known as The Jacaranda City or Cap City, and for the custodians of hip hop, the baton to lead the new school is coveted, albeit riddled, with pressure. Affirming a pursuit for Cap City GOAT status, rapper, songwriter, director, and model, Ivy Leeg claims his take as leader of the wave with his latest offering, Izy.
True to its stylistic interpolation of the word easy, there is a trite balance of wit and mellow production, and subtle puns that evoke the complimentary stank face when choking on that purple haze. Embroiled in a cadence and vocal texture reminiscent of Tupac Shakur’s “Hail Mary”, “Dusse” and “Puff Pass” are the perfect anthems for a RAW lover’s “nimbus hunting”.
A strong contender for best track on the album has to be “Hip Hop”: the counter-culture homage to ’90s rap duo, Dead Prez. Naturally, for a cult classic of the same title, one is expected to dwell in the realm of boombap, if not freestyle, of the iconic alien-esque beat – but not Ivy, he goes against the grain and delivered smooth wordplay over a stank face trap beat. Sampling the legends and uniting the contrasting worlds of underground and mainstream cultures.
While his enunciation of words and breath control might need work in some aspects, the potential is evident, as Ivy Leeg seeks to do more than change the game, but leave a legacy.
Feature pic supplied by artist
