Being honest will get you places that bullshit artists will never live to see. I constantly counsel young artists to make their music more personal, more real, instead of doing cover songs & trying to imitate their favorites. In the name of keeping it real, they’re desperate to hide the very details that make them interesting. It’s all wasted effort, of course, one of those gateless gate lessons you can only teach to someone who already gets it.
Keyze AriZona is one such disciple. From the jump, he’s been a remarkably transparent rapper. Usually when writers wear their hearts on their sleeve, the results are hard to look at, too raw. Keyze is a sly fox, though, playing his cards close to his chest until he decides to drop the bomb. “HALFWAY THERE” is a highly distilled example of his usual lane, smoked-out but never hedonist, laid-back but never quite cool, melodic but never remotely pop. These are all good things.
His pen game reflects his Midwest headspace; a lazy drawl with deceptive agility beneath it, the calm chill of a young man under extreme pressure. On the technical front, his bars have improved tremendously over the past two years, so props due. That’s too rare. Most mogs will just park in one spot their whole careers, then get mad at the world for passing them by. Despite his celebration lap here, Keyze is still hungry as hell, keenly aware that his current shine is only the beginning of a long, hard road.
The video itself is excellence. Lately I’ve seen a great many auteurs try exactly this mix of digital-retro VHS artifacting over a bed of hi-res shoots, but this looks better than all of them. Big shout to the improbably named Loagin Sneed for some highly choice camera & editing work.
This is a damn strong single. Keyze AriZona has made a lot of smart moves since the Lockdown Era ended, but this latest joint is his best yet. This is an easy, engaging introduction to a dope young rapper on the rise, the perfect joint at the perfect time. Five Dickies.
