(Photos By Young Kropes)
Collaboration Dedication Volume 4 (listen/download)
Last time readers heard from Milwaukee repping Florida rapper Young Kropes, he was getting his plans together for the Summer. Now that Summer is over, he is moving on to new ventures. One of those ventures includes a new mixtape. The mixtape is a follow up to the third volume of one of his previously featured projects. It has been tagged Collaboration Dedication Volume 4. The volumes are a big deal for Kropes as he has released one volume every year since he moved to Florida. He even did something special this year and took a promotional trip back home to Milwaukee. The new mixtape has 15 total tracks and a healthy range of guest appearances including Wisconsin artists like: Dash D.U.B., Chucky Jones, Tom E Gunn. Plus, there is an infamous Kropes remix. This time around he chose to shake up “Hey You” by the legendary rockers Pink Floyd. And the icing on the cake is that the tape possesses five tracks produced by Young Kropes himself for the first time.
The tape kicks off on a serious note with a track titled “Nothing,” which features an artist by the name of Jay-G. The production is quality with a deep bass and mellow secondary components. The fellas chose to go without a hook on this joint. The title can just be heard as part of the background vocals. The verses are on point. Kropes takes the first half of the song and Jay-G does the second half. The duo deliver crisp flows and solid rhymes. Overall, it’s a fair start to the mixtape. The low key element continues for a few tracks. Then things take a slight detour to a more personal and thought provoking place. Kropes touches on topics such as the hardships of the music business, detrimental lifestyles, etc. A standout track from this side of things would be “Bad Habits.” It’s an instrument driven number with a theme that a lot of people will be able to relate to. From here the tape tends to go back and forth between the no – nonsense and purposeful style tracks. However, Kropes does lighten things up by throwing in an occasional party/dance track here and there. Among said tracks is a song titled “Just Turn Me Up.” “Just Turn Me Up” is one of the five cuts that were produced by Kropes. It contains a weighted core and smooth rhythm that create a perfect head nodding tune. Which coincidentally is also the theme at work. The track is all about letting go and vibing out to dope music. All in all, it’s an enjoyable record. As a whole, Collaboration Dedication Volume 4 is an adequate offering. The production and features are likeable. The lyrics are up to par. Fans of Young Kropes will find it to be right up their alley. And new listeners will find a worthy selection of mixed content.
**My Two Cents: Sad that I missed Young Kropes while he was in town. But happy to see that he is still hard at work with his music. Collaboration Dedication Volume 4 was a cool tape. “Bad Habits” and “Bumpin” are my favorite songs. Readers can see what else Kropes has been up to by checking out his: website, fan page, or Twitter. -MinM
