Listen To The Masters – Ghettosocks/DK

Rising Canadian producer DK and Award-Winning MC Ghettosocks have just released their Listen To The Masters project, a body of work which has been crafted, planned and mastered since 2019 when Reflections, the opening track of the album was released to establish the foundations of the album.

Ghettosocks talks work ethic, keeping a right attitude and living rightfully, blocking the negative noise and believing in yourself, both his pen and flow are exceptionally well crafted and precedes the following track in the best of manners.

I always like to point out that the composition of a body of work is crucial, whilst half of the planet praises Pusha T’s It’s Almost Dry joint, it never sat well with me because the way the track list was put together was very awkward and I ultimately couldn’t understand its purpose/theme. Which is why it’s always something I look out for. But with DK and Ghettosocks, I didn’t find any issues regarding the construction of Listen To The Masters. It has everything required for an enjoyable listen, back and forth, with retrospective songs such as All In and Smoove Regardless as well as hard-hitting songs like Be A Mango and John McEnroe.

The second track of the album is titled What It Seems featuring Skyzoo and Rome Streetz which was released in March and struck me, it was the song that allowed me to discover who Ghettosocks and DK were, and really surprised me in a very good way, DK clearly has a talent for music production, working with artists such as Skyzoo and Rome Streetz shows just that. Street’z verse is out of this world, with his rhyming scheme and flow that I am so familiar with and cherish.

The Masters featuring C.L. Smooth, El Da Sensei came out last month, and I waited until the album had dropped to listen to it. The song is very soothing, and its production reminds me of what a young Joey Bada$$ would have loved to rap over on 1999. The scratches scream NYC in the 90s, whilst all guests murdered their verses. To hear C.L. Smooth in 2022 after decades of presence in the game is truly a blessing.

As briefly just mentioned, Be A Mango featuring pHoenix Pagliacci and LxVNDR is a rather hard-hitting song behind its metaphors and double-entendres, the song was released just a few weeks before the album release, pHoenix Pagliacci’s presence is a bowl of fresh air and I can’t help but hear an influence from D12 with Devils Night that dropped in 2001 on DK’s production. I love that.  

All in features O.C. and Moka Only, and is once again a song that displays so many layers from a sung chorus to both O.C. and Moka Only’s fire verses, showcasing the hardest-working ethic you can possibly have, the production is much different than the rest of the project so far, almost minimalist but not quite so, it takes a lot of effort to make a compelling track when trying to allow the listener to grasp it lyrically.

Industry Skit uses self-mockery, again reminiscent of a young Eminem when allowing the opportunity for Paul Rosenberg to have his say on his albums, in Industry Skit, we have the perfect example of a hard-working individual demonstrating/proving that he perhaps isn’t where he deserves to be, but he is fine with it.

CHKN CHOP featuring Tachichi and Ufo Fev is my favourite song from the 10-track project, it is incredible from start to finish, the production is yet again spectacular, the samples used are crazy and each artist from Ufo Fev to Tachichi and Ghettosocks brought in straight heat.

On Smoove Regardless featuring Ambition and Justo the MC, we have a rather soothing song screaming Brooklyn, as the title suggests “Smoove Regardless”. The title screams Jazz and Hip-Hop on the same pedestal, and makes for a polished finish.

I am very pleased with the overall sound of the project, each song is unique in its own way and the replay value is exceptional, with each track having different traits that allows for a smooth experience throughout. Ghettosocks hasn’t gone under the radar at all for me, I loved each of his verses and Baggage is a beautiful conclusion. I cannot wait to hear more from DK and Ghettosocks, because it would be a shame if they didn’t work together again.