Genre Defying Entertainment – none
araabMUZIK
emerged at a time when electronic music and hip-hop were reuniting. At
the top of the 2010s, the EDM trap sound took over the world but
araabMUZIK was certainly one of the few who kept it grounded to its
roots. He'd chop up EDM samples on an MPC in the way that many of the
forefathers would sample soul and breakbeats, transforming it into a
whole new sound for a new generation.
The rapper returned with his latest body of work that encapsulates this notion titled, TRAP SOUL.
The five-track EP explores both sides of araabMUZIK's influence for an
atmospheric eighteen-minute sonic journey. No features, just araabMUZIK
left to his own devices on this one.
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AraabMuzik was inspired by heavyweight rap producers Dr. Dre, Swizz
Beatz, and Just Blaze, but is known to incorporate samples from
high-gloss trance singles into his output.
The Providence, Rhode Island native, born Abraham Orellana, creates
hard-hitting beats swathed in dramatic strings, spiked with repetitive
piano and synthesizer vamps, and switches between stripped-down and
layered arrangements to equal effect.
During the latter half of the 2000s, he broke into the Dipset camp,
where he contributed productions to tracks by the Diplomats, Duke Da
God, Jim Jones, Cam’ron, and Vado, and he went outside the crew to
assist Capone-N-Noreaga on 2010’s The War Report 2. The same year, he
issued a mixtape of instrumentals, a volume in the Instrumental Kings
series, and followed it in 2011 with Electronic Dream — a dance album
featuring samples of tracks by Jam & Spoon, Ian van Dahl, and
Kaskade.
During the next few years, he released numerous mixtapes and EPs as
recordings by the likes of 50 Cent, Troy Ave, and Azealia Banks, which
featured his productions, reached the public.
He survived shootings that occurred during a pair of attempted robberies in 2013 and 2016.
Later in 2016, he released Dream World, his second proper album. That
same year he lent his production skills to Joe Budden’s Rage & the
Machine album before returning to his own music in the spring of 2017
with the “Wanted” single featuring Nevelle Viracocha.