A few years out from his previous entry of Moonlight Hills, Kartel is back with DarkChild. A modern hip hop record that is a fusion of genres. Speeding and slowing the tempo at will, Kartel makes waves of melody and rhythm within a project worthy of every hip hop head. As an impressive 2nd entry into the franchise and universe that is Johhny Kartel, Kartel has an ability to move the most rugged of individuals with his vividly real anecdotal lyrics while simultaneously singing hmyns of love and pain to the ladies. Weaving tales of the city life while reminiscing over gentlemenly vices, Johhny Kartel takes you on the stark journey of the DarkChild.
Johhny Kartel begins his album with a royal fuck you to all the haters type anthem called "F*ck Em All (Intro). "Well a mofo could never control me, only squeeze me and hold me...pimp game but i never get cold feet, couple gs for a n***a that's a slow week" These lines just sear through the speakers over the beat like you're listening to a descendant of classic hip hop. Johhny Kartel shows up and shows out why getting older and staying authentic to the craft of hip hop pays off. You will hear a lot of uptempto rapping and singing on this album, a true student of the Midwest and Chicago style, craft, and sound. The legendary 90s influences permeate the DarkChild LP and its sound honors the past while forging ahead with the new.
Those Lies contains a powerful hook "I got hoes all in my bedroom, does sex come with those lies, I sit face to face when I talk to her does truth come with those eyes, is you riding for me or not see you can't really play both sides!" When you hear this chorus you will be singing along immediately and wanting to run it back. Lots of philosophy packed into this track as well as the project entirely. The melodic crooning and melancholic atmosphere of this record (project too) will have you wanting to see this paired with the darkest of anime. DarkChild could be the soundtrack to a lot of different cinema and narratives, I'm sure you'll be visualizing many of your favorite universes while listening.
No Play is a song about change as well as how some things will never change, a track about personal growth and dealing with the ups and downs of relationship. "i don't wanna play no more, let's start over" rings in my head as Johhny Kartel's singing echoes in the headphones.
A common theme through out DarkChild is Johhny Kartel's gothic romance; "Making love to you under sunsets, it’s a red moon can I confess? I been staring at you in that sundress, picking dead flowers I ain't done yet" the visual poetic writing style cuts through here and makes you want to play it back so you can recite along. The song Sunsets (RedMoon) will resonate with any fan of good music and if you're into the emo genre regardless if you like hip hop or not i think you could appreciate the musicality of this record. Johhny Kartel is a master of genre fusion. Highly recommend bumping DarkChild to a glass of wine or perhaps a bourbon cocktail.
Gotham City is an awesome joint that's an epicly dark rap banger, a hit that you want to see in a vampire chase scene, something so cinematic I swear you could hear this song in the next Blade film. "Copped a whip it's all white but I might black it, I got scopes on em from the rooftop, when I shoot it’s really like practice." The idea that he’d black out his white sports car with a matte finish along with the action packed line about ballistics makes this part of the song come off so cool. Gotham City is a memorable track that you will want to bump while cruising through your city at high speeds.
Rulez is a witty ballad about shining greater than your competition. "You can't divide us just like the seven" sing raps Johhny Kartel to begin the song. This track is jam packed of puns you'll have to run it back a lot to catch everything, considering the speed of the lines and the pace of the song, Rulez is very uptempo.
DarkChild will have you equally remembering battles fought, won, and lost long ago coupled with the romances you fumbled and let slip through your fingers. If you can handle a bittersweet record that pushes for a brighter tomorrow, you’ll want to bump DarkChild.
"Time past, looking at my future through a wine glass, fiends on the block overdosing over dime bags, 100 million dollars the only thing that make my eyes big, we could never work that’s what the cheating and the lies did." sing raps Johhny Kartel to close out the 15 track album on the outro record DND (Outro), that will have you appreciating his knack for poetry. The outro track leaves much to be questioned about the future of Johhny Kartel because its clear that even though there's a lot of history in his music, his story is far from over and DarkChild is thus a chapter in the explosively elevating legacy of the Johhny Kartel universe.
Lyrically potent, melodically captivating, Johhny Kartel is an intriguingly and quickly rising hip hop force to be reckoned with. His expression and album crafting will have you thirsting for more from the South Side Chicago recording artist.
Make sure to keep up with Johhny Kartel on DSPs and social medias linked below!
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