M Huncho and Nafe Smallz have a lot in common. They both employ slick, auto-tuned heavy flows that are reliant on melody, all the while slipping in a few notable bars here and there, with Huncho the more “lyrical” and impressive in terms of flow out of the two.
In this way, you could say that they are cut from the same cloth, or maybe that they share some of the same DNA. That brings us to their joint effort, DNA.
Admittedly, I was somewhere between excited and skeptical regarding this project. When it comes to a lot of the more melodically leaning rap music these days, it is much easier, at least in my opinion, for artists to blend together. It takes something especially ear-grabbing to stand out. That means a variety of flows and inflections, creative ad-libs, or unique subject matter are required to stand out.
When it comes to M Huncho, who is clearly getting very close to achieving exalted status in Willer’s World, he is somewhat of a gold standard in this genre to me. He has multiple albums, in Utopia and Huncholini the 1st, that has set him apart from other artists of his ilk. Tracks like “Huncho For Mayor,” “Eagles,” “Pee Pee,” “Head Huncho, “Bando Ballads,” “True Colours” and “Tranquility” are all in constant rotation for me after hearing them for the first time back in January.
Nafe Smallz, on the other hand, has never really stood out to me all that much. He has a large following, a few albums under his belt, as well as a nice list of features. I have never really listen to his previous albums, and just haven’t heard a ton that would compel me to do so. I’ll admit ignorance when it comes to most of his discography, but his features have always been serviceable, if not overly impressive. He blends into the style and sound of a few other artists for me, but I have never felt compelled to skip a verse of his. He falls into this weird gray area for me.
When it comes to their new project, DNA, I ended up being pleasantly surprised. It is a solid collection of tracks, giving you plenty of laid back energy; Perfect to drive around to, and if parties where still a thing (thanks Covid, you fuck), it would be perfect music that isn’t going to overpower a crowd, and give you plenty of palatable music to vibe out to. If you listen a little closer though, there are a fair number of highlights and interesting moments that do enough to elevate DNA past the point of “some cool vibey background music.” M Huncho’s varied and rapid flow on the single “5Am” is a great example of this proving to be true.
In terms of instrumentation, the somewhat hazey, yet futuristic nature of the beats fit the mixtape art. Tracks like “Changed,” feature some appealing keys that sound like the sound you hear when you’re scrolling through the menus of an old PS2 JRP. “Twice” may be my favorite instrumental here. It features what sounds like a theremin, giving it this eerie, other worldly quality. It complements the synths and various flourishes of keys to a T.
“Louis Vuitton/Lost Hope” is another standout from the instrumental standpoint. There is a pretty rapid acoustic guitar line being repeated, sharing time with a flute or recorder passage that sounds so close to being off key or out of pitch. This makes it all the more left-field and interesting, if not strictly for the fact that it shouldn’t sound as good as it does. Then we get surprised with a beat switch, where the guitar strings continue and the tempo picks up pretty drastically. It is an exciting moment on the tape, despite M Huncho’s past dabbling, and the trend of beat switches these days. This track definitely has the highest level of energy on the whole project, with M Huncho’s lightning flow galloping stride for stride with the beat, never falling behind.
The instrumentals all fit that futuristic, somewhat smoked out, futuristic aesthetic greatly, and provide a wonderful platform for M Huncho and Nafe Smallz to shine. And in that regards, M Huncho gives me a lot of what I expected, but Nafe Smallz is the one here that really stepped up to the occasion and pulled it all together. If this was an M Huncho album, I would’ve loved it. But Nafe actually adds another element that really takes this to another level. He more than holds his own, and gives a nice bit of variance to the performances here.
“Cold World” is a track where we see Huncho and Nafe at their respective bests. Nafe’s flow is tight, and his chorus is emotive and cold, just as the title would suggest. M Huncho drops a nice line that invokes Bong Joon-Ho’s classic film Memories of Murder, when he says “I see the fake in a brudda ’cause my eyes don’t lie, my guy,” just as the detective in the film claimed he could simply determine someones guilt just by staring into their eyes. M Huncho never sticks with one flow for too long, speeding it up, or giving space in between his words, letting them linger just long enough for them to get stuck in your head. The we have a feature from the always eccentric Young Adz. He’s like Young Thug in a way to me, because there is always an equal chance he’ll give you an impressive verse, or just baffle you with the shit he decides to rap about. In this sense, this verse is classic, predictably unpredictable Adz. He drops the gem of a line in, “Cum in that pussy, a lava lamp,” and also just aggressively breathes into the mic for a full 4 count, continuing that odd breathing throughout the track with some ad-libs. Never change, Adz, you weird, weird dude.
“Royalty” is another standout, and shows the level of emotion heft both of these guys can put into a track. It’s mainly about love and loss, heartbreak and overcoming the awful things they’ve been through. Nafe Smallz recounts countless sleepless nights after losing friends. His performance is maybe his most impressive on the album, as you can really feel the pain in his voice when he says, “Drowning in the light, my problems ain’t getting no better/ Woke up out my sleep, I hear you when I’m alone still/ Music on repeat, it’s taking care of my soul still/ Rapping offbeat, I’m high, I’m out of my dome still.” So even when he is able to utilize his normal techniques to escape the pain, like music and drugs, it doesn’t always work. That pain still sticks with him, messing with his productively and ability to enjoy those things that generally would bring him joy.
This level of emotion in his music shouldn’t surprise me. I stumbled onto an Apple Music interview where Nafe explains that he used to just be a straight up rapper. But after losing so many friends to the streets, he just naturally shifted into the more melodic, expressive style he employs today. Even his songs of celebration are mired in the downsides of his life, and that pain is always just bubbling below the surface.
On “Party,” we see Nafe seemingly having a call and response style conversation with himself through his ad-libs. I love this, since it’s one thing to simply repeat a word as an ad-lib, but without his verse we, see him actually adding to each bar, complete with an ethereal filter on his voice. Huncho provides some more entertaining ad-libs on “Changed,” especially when he is complimenting Nafe’s verse. That track is full of ear worm flow after ear worm flow as well, with both artists flexing their understanding for melody and their ability to craft catchy passages.
Speaking of flows, M Hunchos flow at the halfway point of “Flooded” is just ridiculous. He uses some slick elongation of syllables in his back and forth with Nafe, just after reminding us exactly how technically proficient he really is with the mic. This man can always be found tightly nestled in the pocket of the beat, just crafting immense flows. Throughout the project, and really any M Huncho project to this point, his feel for flow is seriously unmatched. It all just sounds so natural and easy for him. Also, the visuals for the track are fucking awesome.
“Money Make You Change,” is worth referring simply for the few bars M Huncho gives us late in the track. “Yeah, Cali got me fucked off my face/ If you got me, then I got you, touché/ Hitting’ hard like I’m Bobby Boucher/ Water on me like it poured rain/ All it did was make a change.” It’s an important moment when Bobby Boucher, AKA Adam Sandler in The Waterboy gets referenced. The water reference in the following line is slick, tying back into Boucher’s double duty as a hard hitting linebacker, and somewhat reliable waterboy. I’m pretty sure there’s a scene where they play in a downpour too, so it’s an oddly all encompassing set of bars calling back to an iconic, if juvenile, early Adam Sandler film. I love it. Got me pining for some high quality H20. The laid back, almost reggae-esque electric guitar twinkling is wonderful, aiding to one of the most straight up beautiful instrumentals here. It’s an instance where everything comes together exactly how it should, which Nafe’s legitimately impressive and understated vocals on the chorus tying it all up wonderfully.
M Huncho and Nafe Smallz are in the running for one of the most logical and effective duos in the UK right now. I haven’t mentioned it yet, but Nafe’s somewhat nasally, more high pitched tone is a perfect foil to M Huncho’s lower, slightly more monotone, but equally expressive delivery. Their topics of choice: weed, clothes, girls, struggle and pain all intersect, and allow them to craft and display a true artistic chemistry on DNA. As stated previously, I expected all of this from M Huncho. His flow, melody, and ear for interesting beats has been proven already. But to see Nafe fit the bill as well was an extremely welcome surprise, even if that evidence may have been plan to see if I would have listened to more of his previously release music. At the very least, he has given me more than enough reason to go back and check those albums out.
Maybe what they did here isn’t groundbreaking or Earth shattering, but they used their tools and skills to give us an album in this melodic vein that is anything but average. I would always like to see a bit more variance or specificity in terms of lyrics, but they both make up for somewhat generic lyrical focuses with their impressive performances and display of chemistry. They may not have brought upon a new, transformative age of music, but as a duo, sharing that same DNA, you could say this is the progression of M Huncho and Nafe Smallz into “Da New Age” of their already fruitful partnership as artists.
M Huncho’s Socials:
Nafe Smallz’ Socials: