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When one thinks of Chicago hip hop, certain names come to mind: Common, Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, Twista, Rhymefest… Most of these rappers adhere(d) to a similar, unique sound. However, when it comes to longtime, Chi-town underground emcee Robust, diverges from any conformity or pre-illusions and stands tall on his very own two. With the release of Fillin In the Potholes, it is evident that Robust is definitely one of today’s “last true emcees that you will see.”

Robust does not recruit anyone to help out with the verses on this album; there are no features. Robust solely attacks each beat and conquers it as his own in a very heartfelt way. The title of Fillin In the Potholes really sets the theme for the album of a man going about changing and fixing the bumps and bruises in life. A very personal album, Fillin In the Potholes can almost take on a style of a memoir at times, but always adheres to a singular theme of telling a story of life through the eyes of Robust himself.

“Soloist” is the first stand-out track on this album; with catchy DJ cuts on the hook and some gritty horns and tambourines defining the instrumental, this East-coast-sounding track does well to define the sound that Robust has. Again, pertaining to the idea of a personal project, Robust speaks on himself as a rhyme artist in today’s society, as well as being a beat maker, too. This song is followed up by “Northern Soul,” another stand-out track for the fact that the alternative, East-coast sound is still going strong and Robust speaks on his past during his teenage years. The consistency of this album is like that of a concept-album, only even more-so considering the fact that even the instrumentals seem to play off of each other, too.

Jazz plays an impeccably invigorating part in almost every instrumental; from keys to horns, the beats harmonize with the silky smooth sounds of jazz music. Only a few producers took part in the production of this album, which, again, helps keep the consistency of the album nice and sweet. Sampling some soul in there, too, the feel of this album is very passionate and the listener can really gain a lot of insight into the emotions and ideas of Robust himself. Even producing a few tracks himself, Robust really made this album his own, just as Kanye had done with The College Dropout or Dilla did with Welcome 2 Detroit.

Lyrically, Robust is great. An on-point flow that comes with a skilled lyricist, a bag-full of stories to tell and a book of rhymes all help Robust stand out as an emcee. Since he’s been in the rap game since his debut in 2000 when he was just a teenager, Robust has some undeniable skill and experience when it comes to hip hop. All of that skill and experience manifests itself within the verses of heard on Fillin In the Potholes. I don’t want to canonize this album as Chi-town’s finest project, however, Robust definitely deserves a top spot when it comes to naming some of Chicago’s best emcees, and Fillin In the Potholes is simply a dope hip hop record, period. So, my rating…

9.5/10

I recommend this album to any fan of story-telling in hip hop, as well as alternative hip hop acts.

Tracklisting:
1) Fillin In the Potholes
2) Soloist
3) Northern Soul
4) High Road
5) Loop Dreams
6) All I Do
7) Remember When
8) I Wake Up
9) Spare Change
10) How Ya Livin
11) Polluted Views
12) Tortured Soul
13) Driftwood
14) What’s Your World
15) Pressure
16) Realism

***Notable Mentions:
Saigon: The Greatest Story Never Told Chapter 2: Bread and Circuses
Apollo Brown & Guilty Simpson: Dice Game
JR & PH7: The Good Life
SneakerBox Chock & Bueller da Don: Election Day EP
Point Blank: X History
Lil Fame & Termanology: Fizzyology

Tags : Apollo BrownCommonGuilty SimpsonKanye WestLupe FiascoRhymefestRobustTermanology
Stone

The author Stone

Stone is a hip-hop enthusiast residing in NJ/PA. As an aspiring hip-hop producer, Stone studies communications and shares his passion for music by letting the world in on the wonderful world of hip-hop.