“I put my heart in these lyrics, hoping somebody hear’em,” raps up-and-coming Hip Hop artist M.Y. Key on his current song “La Familia”.
As the soulful Nashville rhymer flows melodically over an easy to digest trap-style beat, I quickly sensed how personal his words are. I heard them, and they’re familiar.
It’s apparent Key has lost people he loves and fears losing more. The support, respect, and companionship of his loved ones matters to him. It’s an emotional trend in his writing that’s evident in previous songs “Problems” and “Perfect Nightmare”, only here there’s less dire anxiety and more gratitude and fond reflection.
Key says on the chorus, “You help me to keep my sanity, when everybody’s against me I know you gon’ stand with me; when s**t’s up in the air I need for you to land with me, for my brother I’m slidin’ because I believe in family.”
I believe Key has potential.
Is “La Familia” a masterful display of beats, rhymes, and life? No.
Too often here Key segues into aggressive talk instead of sticking with the grit in his heart. Expressing feelings, I feel that’s his strength. He breaks continuity just to add rhymes for rhymes sake, dismissing brevity for bravado and cling.
Having explored his catalog, I would suggest he go back through all his songs and obsessively study what connects and what doesn’t. Lighten up on the slurs and expletives and invest more in his ability to be descriptively resonant. Maybe take what he learns and revisit this song as a much-improved remix.
Key’s accompanying video for “La Familia” is typical of it’s likely budget and stereotypical of its environment and subject matter. I assume it was made within its financial and creative means.
The song and its visual didn’t garner an ovation, but I also wasn’t in a hurry for it to end. There’s an audience for this joint beyond Key’s immediate circle that could accept “La Familia” as a street anthem. |THIS.
[By M.J. Walker]
