SOTBMusic Retrospective: @IkedaKid’s Green Card EP

Today, we’re going to skip the formalities and the flowery language. I’ve been familiar with Ikey for the better part of eleven years, since our UMD days. The shit we got into was crazy, even down to the rap beef Ikey and I found ourselves warring in between each other. But, one thing I’ve always kept in mind when speaking of Ikey is that he has bars for days. And that’s where we come to the Green Card EP.

A nine (eleven-to-twelve, if you’re on Bandcamp or Apple Music)-track project, Green Card is fire. To put it shortly, it feels like something IDK would drop today and people’d love it. That’s, obviously, no slight to IDK (I love his shit). But, that’s to say that IDK and Ikey have similar styles and feels to their music. Essentially, if you like IDK, you’ll probably rock with Ikey.

Ikey’s bars have aged well over the past two-plus years since Green Card was featured on spots such as 2DBZ. The lyricism is still as poignant as it was in 2015. The aspirations to be more than a stereotype and/or just another dude still ring true. The production feels like a mix of something that’d be on Wale’s SHINE and something from the A$AP Mob. There’s a lot of sample-heavy production, but it’s boombappy but still heavy-hitting as hell. Overall, if you haven’t checked it out, you need to–now.

When this project dropped, I was in the middle of working on Unhinged (hence the Ikey and A.M.N. shoutout on “Remember the Name”) and it made me say “damn, this guy who I’ve known for years is getting buzz. I’m getting buzz. Let’s put on for former Terps and knock our respective shit out of the park.” I went harder on Unhinged because of this project, if we’re being honest.

I heard it and I was like “I need to go and revamp some of my tracks so I can explore different emotions through the tracks.” I mean, most of the album dealt with my mom’s death and how it made me unhinged. However, there was room to do some stuff that wasn’t as death-centric (see “City on Fire,” the aforementioned “Remember the Name,” and “Promised Land” featuring Wayne Watts). I get inspired from everything I hear, so it’s no surprise that this inspired me as well.

Overall, again, it’s a project that’s worth checking out if you want some dope lines and material that you can relate to. It’s also a great project to just vibe with on a normal day when you just want good music. Check it out above and remember to support dope music in all its forms. You never know who or what will inspire you to be better.