You don’t have to be a diehard fan of Inglewood rapper Skeme to acknowledge his ability to effortlessly spew a stream of ruthless rhymes. His latest mixtape, Bare With Me, wasn’t his best work because it was too long and a little unpolished, but “Oversick” shows him picking up the slack. More than just flowing effortlessly, Skeme performs rather than recites his lyrics, adding vocal inflections and brief pauses to the verse in a way that emphasizes his particular ability to bring these lyrics to life.
This performative dimension of rapping is often under-appreciated, but it’s clearly important. Even with his very distinctive voice, Skeme realizes that that’s not enough; how you use that voice is just as important. If you think about it, this is why Future was able to revitalize auto-tune. Auto-tune itself wasn’t the problem; the problem was that too many rappers thought the mere sound of auto-tune was enough to keep people’s interest. They were using it as a prop, a costume; Future uses it as a prosthetic, an enhancement. Skeme does the same thing with his characteristic rasp, pushing his voice into new sounds. Listen below. His new album Ingleworld is set for release on December 17.
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