Source: Redefinition Records / Redefinition Records

For the past decade and a half,  Kev Brown has occupied a significant segment of underground Hip-Hop and his two-headed skill set has only been refined over the years. It has been an especially busy year for the DMV rapper and producer, dropping his third LP of the year with the potent Fill In The Blank which only aims to heighten the mystique about the man and place him properly next, if not ahead, of his dual-skilled peers.

Fill In The Blank runs for 20 tracks, nine short from the Low Budget Crew member’s epic and equally sweeping Homework album from earlier this year. While the strategy of releases isn’t immediately known, the bookend projects that sandwich the instrumental and wildly experimental Delve Into Classic Moog show and prove that the years haven’t dulled Brown’s ability to craft moments with thumping production and his comfortable, bourbon-soaked rhyme schemes.

Beyond the production, what stands out above anything is Brown’s ability to get mileage out of his verses without breaking a sweat or word count. This efficiency in rhyming, coupled with production that sounds chiseled from the finest boom-bap of the ’90’s and early 2000’s, is only heightened by the fact Brown posts an everyman observational stance via his verses.

Speaking of production, former rapper and producer, and current drummer for funk band The Du-Rites J-Zone gets several shout-outs across the songs for providing the drums on the project.

There are schools of thought that embrace the beauty of simplicity and yes, Brown isn’t looking to emerge as a lyrical vanguard at this stage of his career. Instead, he sticks to his proven formula doing what the beats call for and rapping directly to the listener. There isn’t any abstract meaning hidden in the song, and there’s enough head-nod heat to last you through the chilly fall months and beyond.

Stream Kev Brown’s Fill In The Blank via Spotify below. Hit this link to find where the project is streaming and how you can support the artist with your dollars. And while you’re at it, go grab some high-quality Kev Brown merch here.

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Photo: Redefinition Records