Say what you will about Drake, the brother (when he’s on) has a deft pen and a great ear for beats. I say that because I’d absolutely love to hear an instrumental version of the entirety of his latest massive project, For All The Dogs Scary Hours Edition, a deluxe version of the OG FATD. The beats used here are, in a phrase, dope AF. Plus, many of them allow for Drake and his features to flex their lyrical muscles. If you can get Sexxy Redd and SZA to drop some memorable quotables on “Rich Baby Daddy” (even before coochies start breathing), you’ve got God-tier production–which usually brings the best out of everyone.

Enter wordsmith and frequent SOTB subject TaReef Knockout, who crafts a three-minute homage to those who’ve seen him rise over the “Stories About My Brother” instrumental. The track follows the basic premise of the Drake track; on the freestyle, TaReef speaks on his mans 500 grand and how they’ve held him down even when things got shaky. Everyone needs a friend like that, in all honesty. If you have one, and you can support their growth as well, stick with them–even when things get hazy. It’s why I still rock with True after 20+ years. It’s why I still rock with the mother of my children after almost 20 years. Hell, it’s why I rock with folks like Ashley as hard as I have over the last five-to-ten years. Getting back to the freeverse, the song paints several pictures of what it was like for Reef growing up and how those who really held him down kept him going. Overall, it’s a helluva track–one that deserves your ears.

Check out the freestyle below and support dope music in all its forms.