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Most Americans know almost nothing about Akron except that it’s the city where Lebron James grew up. This being said, if you’re a fan of violent rap music, then it’s worth noting that Akron has a lot of great rappers, too. Chief among these is Ampichino, whose Da Krazies 2 is a two disc masterpiece, full of memorable beats and stellar guest appearances. In short – Krazies 2 is consistently good, something almost no double album has done since All Eyez On Me. Stylistically, Amp sticks to the Akron formula – a grimey voice dropping depressing lyrics over a lush, soulful beat. Even if that formula doesn’t sound like your thing, his rhymes are so precise that you might find yourself thoroughly absorbed in his melancholy poetry. Here’s 3 great Ampichino songs from 2013:
Speaking of great music from The Midwest, 2013 was also a great year for Fort Wayne’s Stu Hustlah. Stu only raps with Murder Gang, which could be the hardest group in rap history. There’s no Maybach glamour or True Religion joy here, just an endless mantra of dead serious murder threats and heartfelt sadness about friends in prison and the grave. All of this emotional extremity would be intolerable if the beats weren’t so gorgeous and the flow wasn’t so damn smooth. Stu himself has made as least 50 good songs this year, spread over a handful of dope albums. He’s also been making his formerly hard-to-find music available on more music platforms, including iTunes and Spotify. Two offical sounding albums are widely available now, one called It’s Me and an even better one called Born In November 2: Free Da Nut. Da Nut’s incarceration is something Stu references frequently, and Stu has also dropped a collection of older tracks with Da Nut called Greatest History Moments. Here are some good songs from all three albums.
