The Weekly Coos

Around March, I was doing some music diving on YouTube while on my stationary bike. It started with me playing random beats and freestyling as I worked out, but it led me down a rabbit hole where, among other hip-hop videos, I personally discovered New York’s WHATMORE. It’s been about a decade since the rise and height of BROCKHAMPTON, and the kind of stylistic approach they took as a Hip-Hop Boyband. They weren’t the first, but they definitely made more of an impact than Mindless Behavior in the 2010s. WHATMORE isn’t the next BROCKHAMPTON, nor are they claiming to be; however, you can’t deny from listening to them that they are crafted similarly. They are Hip-Hop first, but they have a mild alternative edge to them that makes their music unique. It was only after listening to one of their newest songs, “Jackie Chan,” that I began digging into who they were, and fortunately, they made that part easy. The band uploaded short biographies about who they are and where they come from, and well… it’s very NEW YORK, and that’s how the band would describe themselves in a Newsweek interview. To me, they are one of the definitive sounds of New York adolescence. Here’s why you should listen to them.

WHATMORE, like many artists, care about the layered quality of their output. From production to vocal mixing, they share emotional dexterity with how they deliver their rhymes. It’s a composition of varying factors, but the most pivotal is the flow. It’s almost as if they can flow over any beat they create in the alternative, like two of their latest singles, “Still Loiteringg” and “2000s Pop Punk RnB,” where the former has more Hip-Hop tones and the latter takes more notes from indie rock sounds. Composed of vocalist Cisco Swank, Yoshi T., Jackson August, Sebastiano, and producer Elijah Judah, they have a beautiful cohesion that elevates their sound beyond expectations. It makes for a more seamless listen where you can easily transition from the tender and acoustic-driven “Jenny’s” to the more fun and jovial “eastside w my boys.” That’s one key factor I look for and prefer in bands who aim to be different rather than trying to stay in an expanded one-genre lane. I mean this when talking about artists who never want to be just one genre, like Bad Bunny or Drake or early Cee-Lo Green, whose 2004 album Cee-Lo Green… Is The Soul Machine is a staple for me when thinking about artists who seamlessly blend singing and rapping. WHATMORE is on a similar wavelength, albeit more interesting.

Though they aren’t the only emerging Hip-Hop acts from New York currently making waves, they are an eclectic bunch, and the influence shows through their different releases. Delivery Boys are what I’d say is WHATMORE’s contemporary amongst the rising Hip-Hop acts in the area, but unlike WHATMORE, they’re more rap-driven. I’ve gotten that sense from their releases and from the countless videos of them rapping over classic beats, like “Shook Ones Part 2,” on Instagram. These groups have that youthful essence that reverberates through the sound systems you’re playing their music off of. Despite having watched their music on YouTube on my TV to begin with, replaying it through my headphones and computer brings something different to the table. It hit me when I kept replaying “Put it on hearts,” which showcased their innermost desire, and that’s the music. It isn’t unique to musicians; they are in it for the love of the game, but the avenues WHATMORE took to bring that sense of connection to the music video for the aforementioned song stood out greatly. It’s just like how they can seamlessly create tender tracks like that and make something more industrial-influenced like “Jackie Chan.”

Amongst the many emerging acts, like Armani White, Delivery Boys, Paris Texas, and Wolffacejoey, WHATMORE is the one I’ve latched onto the most. They have some of my highest recommendations if you’re looking for new Hip-Hop that strays from the norm established by the many heavy hitters dominating the mainstream in all regions, and I don’t mean just Drake, Jack Harlow, J. Cole, Eminem, and the lot. Peep WHATMORE’s latest single “On Site,” which highlights and refines their rhyming talent and technical skills. While you’re at it, peep all their tracks.