Ah, yes...money. It’s what makes the world go round, right? The secret to any good come-up song—or anything come-up related—is the connection to money and how money can make most things better. Dollar-dollar bills are always on someone’s brain at some point or another, but the ugly sides to wealth aren’t as often discussed, making an idealized life out of something that could ultimately do more harm than good.
Cautious Clay, who just announced the release of his debut album coming in June, takes us on a VHS tape-filled journey of the rise and fall of wealth and the dangers of isolation that come with it. Paris Texas, a Compton-based alternative hip-hop duo, voices their views on how money affects poor communities and how an overwhelming amount of opulence might turn someone off of wealth and excess.
Conversely, Saweetie is fanning out hundreds splayed across a hot pink car and you think, “hmm, maybe this life is for me.” The Icy Queen gives us “pretty bitch summer” vibes with her signature ice and Grecian-inspired architecture. And Kenny Mason, a new “angelic hoodrat” favorite gives us a back-and-forth dialogue with Freddie Gibbs in his newest single, “Much Money.”
Money is money is money—or, money is money is pain. Whatever way you choose to think about it, these artists have something to say.