Well$

These days, most rappers are vivid, but merely in punchline form. Verses become Family Guy episodes, full of formulaic and quick-hitting one-liners that inevitably rattle your gut from their nostalgia, but get old after repeat views and burn out completely over time.

Thankfully, WELL$ is far from your average MC, which MTSYD: The Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher makes very clear. However, the first full release from this enigmatic 19-year-old North Carolina rapper displays much more than cohesiveness and above average production. This album-esque, 15 track project is packed with songs so involved certain top tier rappers wouldn’t even know how to conceptualize them, let alone write them.

The all too real “Cercle Vicieux (Vicious Circle)” dispels the differences between true go getters and people who let bad habits hold them back. The eery “Black Widow” finds WELL$ breaking down the daily of a troubled female, resorting to pole work. “Major Paine” speaks on the perils of fatherhood, when having kids requires non-stop grinding and never actually seeing them. Maybe most notably, the twisted single “Lil Tommy” eerily depicts the downfall of someone who decides to take out his aggression in the most horrendous fashion possible. The details in each of these hard-hitting tracks are so specific, there seem to be no song writing limitations from this NC MC’s assertive imagination.

Case in point, Well$ can even deliver better boastful cuts than most. On emotionally-charged bangers like “GastonTwo09nine” and “Django,” the driven upstart charges uphill, backing up grind talk with rational justification and disregard for anyone in his way. He doesn’t just tell listeners he wants success, he tells listeners why he deserves it. More importantly, that aforementioned attention to detail makes his vision believable.

For a debut, WELL$ knocked MTSYD: TROTABS out of the park. Not only did he deliver an advanced offering, warranting repeat listens for multiple reasons, the passionate rhymer proved his long-term potential might even be more promising. - Beware, The Smoking Section

Charlotte, NC rapper Well$’ new mixtape has a hell of a name–MTSYD: The Revenge Of The African Booty Scratcher. What does MTSYD, you wonder? “Make them suck your dick,” of course. It’s intentionally over-the-top, as Well$’ manager explains the familiar sentiment behind it: “Pretty much he felt like he made the first project and even though he thought it was pretty dope, it didn’t get the reception he thought he deserved.”

While still developing to the point where he can legitimately be pissed off that people aren’t paying attention (let’s face it, a lot of people aren’t paying attention to a lot of the music that comes out—it’s par for the state of the musical union), the attitude behind an over-the-top title, a palpable hunger in Well$’ raps and lyrics, gives MTSYD the energy of a rapper who looks at music as a zero sum game, the stuff of his survival. There’s room for improvement (it’s a bit long and occasionally repetitive), but Well$ has managed to cultivate a cohesive collection of beats, sampled quotes, and perceptive rhymes that points to his potential to give focused life to concepts—a difficult task for any artist, let alone one still finding his voice. - Jon Tanners, Pigeons & Planes

The 19-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native, who was born to Congolese parents and first introduced to French rap, has released his debut mixtape, which puts the old playground insult “African Booty Scratcher” (as immortalized in that scene from Boyz In the Hood, which the title track actually samples) at the epicenter.

The Golden Age-inspired “Savoir-Faire” was the first taste of MTSYD: The Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher we had, but the project offers so much more. Featuring production from DJ Dahi, Ryan Hemsworth and THE BL∆CK HE∆RTS CLUB, it paints a full picture of Well$’s widespread influences, which culminate in a style that’s vintage backpacker one song and new age emo rap the next. “My goal is to be the kinda artist who can do it all,” he explains. - Andy B., MissInfo

Well$ is not an easy rapper to digest or box in. That is certainly evident from the title of his upcoming mixtape MTSYD: The Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher, set to drop on the 19th. His single has built some incredible hype behind the 19 year old Charlotte MC whose lyricism happens to be on point.

Well$ is comfortable spitting about peace and pain at the same time. As a son of illegal immigrants from Congo and someone who was deemed a troubled kid, Well$ certainly has a variety interesting stories to tell. With his dynamic approach, he can easily offer up a reflective track that leaves you rewinding in an attempt to catch the meaning of preceding bar. He’s definitely a meticulous mind twister.

He couples that gift with production that at times can be reminiscent of old-school hip-hop. With Atu by his side on “Dreams of Insomniac,” Well$ paints a vivid picture that showcases how one’s thoughts and experiences can be immensely overwhelming. At one point he says, “I promised my brothers I’d never fold/I cultivated my art and then I learned to paint my soul piece by piece, until I found me in these sheets Of paper I used to write up in my room every week,” Essentially, “Dreams Of An Insomniac” is a great track to listen when trying to get know him as an artist, “State Of Ecstasy PT 2,” and “Lil Tommy” also offer up good insight.

Part of what makes Well$ so compelling is the continuous theme of family that is not only highlighted through his music, but in his career as a whole. Well$ was first exposed to the wonders of rap by his cousin Alec Lomami when he moved to Chapel Hill. Prior to that Well$ mostly listen to African music and a bit of American soul. He is also signed to a label that describes his lyricism to a tee, Immaculate Taste. His one and only labelmate? Cousin and label founder Lomami. In his video for “Savoir-Faire” seen below Well$ spends most of it with his grandmother who has no objection to sporting Jordans. - Peneliope Richards, MTV Iggy

Hunger is one of the most undervalued but precious commodities a young MC can possess. This is particularly true as laid-back swag and bright, wonky sounds that seemed poised to rule the underground at the turn of the decade begin to cede the limelight to something a little more self-consciously nuanced and thematic.

This is the world in which the precociously young North Caroline emcee Well$ is unleashing his imaginatively titled project, MTSYD: The Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher, and if he’s unaware of this it certainly doesn’t show. The album is surprisingly stern and serious for such a youthful artist, but also refreshing.

MTSYD has its downsides, too. The overwrought “Temporary Forever” brings things to a shaky start, spitting a jarring mixture of boilerplate aspirational struggle rap and adulterous bragger about other people’s girlfriends. But things even out soon after with the fantastic “Savoir Fare”, where Well$ showcases a style he’s more capable of handling.

“Savoir Fare” is a more traditional track, in the vein of the 90s and inflected with that era’s signature bounce and flow; resultantly, Well$ sounds just as well-suited for the vibe as anyone in the Pro Era crew. Despite his sometimes high-minded lyrical content, this is the first aspect of Well$ that jumps out: on a technical level, dude can rap.

He isn’t the most original emcee, admittedly. When he isn’t engaging in fluid, Golden Age worshipping that belies his self-confessed modern influences, shades of contemporary artists arise: Drake at his most combative; Kendrick in his more relaxed moments.

Though Well$’ sense of purpose remains consistent throughout the tape, he manages to maintain a sharper focus than expected without losing enjoyable elements. The story raps of “Lil Tommy” are rich with detail, as are his sporadic attacks on kids addicted to their Twitter feeds and to his college-obssed mother – a dilemma dealt away when Well$ explains that that many of his college-bound peers return to the block slinging on “A$$WASTER (Circa ’94)”.

The components of MTSYD occasionally strains under a seriousness that Well$ can’t yet quite defend lyrically, but it remains an enjoyable listen containing far more hits than misses. With an artist still starting out like this, all The Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher really needed was more time to ripen and realize its potential. The fact that Well$ often manages to step over this line at times speaks volumes to all that he may achieve in the future. - Michael Russam, PotholesInMyBlog

Without a doubt, Well$ has one of the funniest mixtape titles to come out this year: MTSYD: The Revenge Of The African Booty Scratcher. While the latter half definitely creates a nasty image in one's mind, like everything this Charlotte native does, it hides a deeper and more personal meaning within the explicit manifestation of a person's anal fixation.

Being a Congolese-American, the 19 year old emcee faced his share of disparaging remarks and cruel teasing from his peers in school; one such name often thrown at him, was "Booty Scratcher". However, he isn't just laying down or purely documenting that point in his life, Well$ is reclaiming it and using it as a tool to achieve his lofty goals of domination.Through fifteen tracks, a journey that is over an hour long, the Booty Scratcher claws his way out of the depths and makes the light completely his.

While Well$ is still relatively young, he displays a wisdom beyond his years. The more you listen to the project, the more apparent it becomes that he is unusually self-aware and able to properly critique himself and his generation. He is torn between his ambition to become a great rapper and the realities of his home life; not being able to eat an adequate meal, but hesitant to get a real job to contribute to his family's mounting bills. Through the rips and tares, listeners find out about Well$' history, aspirations, and most importantly, personality. For a project to be so emotional and heart wrenching at times, it is a pleasant surprise to see that he was able to incorporate his own humor and influences into it. There are number of sarcastic or half-hearted references or total redefinition of many of hip hop's common tropes.

Throughout MTSYD: The Revenge Of The African Booty Scratcher, Well$ comes across as a good kid that is stuck in some unfortunate circumstances. However, he doesn't take these at just face value, which is a welcomed change from the typical emo-conscious rap that has become standard for many intellectual emcees. If you are willing to try something different, you should head over to his soundcloud and stream the project in full. - James Elliott, EARMILK

Well$ is a 19-year-old rapper living in Charlotte, but he was born to Congolese immigrants and he grew up raised by a grandmother who barely spoke English, listening to French rap as well as American. "Growing up African is like you’re in limbo," Well$ has said. "To the white people, you’re black, and to the black people you might as well be white."

The title of his new mixtape, MTSYD: The Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher, is a reference to the epithet thrown at Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s Tre Styles character in Boyz N the Hood, and an overt reference to Well$'s own struggles growing up as an immigrant. It's an interesting story, but on MTSYD he sounds like an interesting developing artist who doesn't quite know who he is yet. His influences are still too present in his music, to the point where you occasionally hear them instead of him: the muted synths and faraway background vocals of opening song "Temporary Forever/xxMONOLOGUExx" are obviously Drake-influenced, and the second half, when the song drops to half-time and Well$ chants in slowed-down vocals, is an unmistakable Kendrick-ism. "Little Tommy" sounds eerily like a classic Mobb Deep beat. Occasionally he sounds like a French rapper approximating the Chiraq sound as on "Django", an oddly formed, compelling song that seems to have three different beats and at least five different choruses.

His firm, clear voice is a great instrument, though, and he knows how to make it work inside of different-sounding productions. The mixtape is rich-sounding and crisply produced; "Faux Gold" has a soured-milk synth line that's part pinched Whoopie Cushion, part sped-up violin. He's got some dope lines, too—"Just because you rap over classics don't mean you say shit," he admonishes on "Savoir Faire", while on "Cercle Vicieux", he's "letting [you] know that there's a life outside your mentions." On the curiously titled "A$$WATER", he raps, "No cell phone, just pimpin off this land line/ Scared to tell these hoes I got a bed time," which is goofy and endearing.

Drake is the strongest influence on present here; "AFTRMDNGHT" was produced by DJ Dahi, who produced Nothing Was the Same's "Worst Behaviour", and the song sounds like Take Care's "Under Ground Kings." "Black Swan", which gets inside the head of the most wearisomely flogged stereotype in rap --the former "Daddy's little girl" that ended up on the pole-- even quotes Drake when explaining how no man could ever want her again: "Cuz no man wanna hear those stories about his lady."

Even if Well$ is derivative, he's promising, and the highlights here push against the issue of originality. When he addresses his own life, being teased for being African, on "Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher", he finally touches upon something volatile, contentious, and his own. "My peoples never slaved to that master, but they still think they past us, why's that?" he grumbles. The song opens with the clip of the "booty scratcher" scene from Boyz N the Hood, and the beat quotes one of the most iconic sounds from the movie: the rolling and clacking of the steel stress balls in Furious Styles' hand as he grimly waits for his son Tre to return home. "These African-Americans making fun of they roots, like where the fuck do you think you come from?," Well$ seethes. It's a startling peephole into something deeply personal in Well$, and unfortunately, there isn't enough of it on this tape. - Jayson Greene, Pitchfork

The term "African Booty Scratcher" used to be a powerful and brutal derogatory term for children in elementary to middle school, an insult that divided African-American children whose skin tone was deemed too "dark" to be normal.

North Carolina bred, Congolese-American rapper Well$ has taken the term away from the narrow-minded bullies and used it to fuel his new project titled MTSYD: The Revenge of The African Booty Scratcher. Well$ uses inspiration from his own heritage as well as popular American culture to develop a sound that is distinctly his own, drawing on southern influences as well as his own African culture. - Justin Davis, Complex

FADER PREMIERE

I first heard the term “African Booty Scratcher” in 2nd grade. I was sitting in the auditorium at P.S. 181, and a classmate employed the term to mock another kid in a hushed whisper before the day’s address began. The kid actually turned out to be Haitian, but specifics like that didn’t matter at the time: there was a collective “other” for us to rally against (darker than the rest of us, with a foreign tongue and kinda bummy clothes), and the cartoonish imagery of a proper-noun title characterized by the perpetual scratching of booty proved more than enough to send us rolling in fits of laughter. This kind of exchange was common amongst black school children in the early ’90s, immortalized in an early scene from Boyz in the Hood, where a young Tre Styles informs his classmate, Everybody’s from Africa. Everybody. All y’all. Everybody, and dude lets the slur fly in retaliation, after clarifying: I ain’t from Africa. I’m from Crenshaw Mafia.

Where you’re “from” has always held disproportionate weight amongst the African diaspora, especially considering very few of us can point to our true origins on a map. This tension is Well$ primary obsession throughout MTSYD: The Revenge of the African Booty Scratcher. The Congolese-American rapper was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and split his attention between the French rap that naturally found his ears and the American artists he heard at his cousin’s crib. The album finds the 19-year-old straddling the line between trunk-rattling southern bounce and the witty 16s of any Freshman spitter–see the “Bandz A Make Her Dance” flip on “Major Paine,” voicing the complaints of deadbeat dads and the daughters they produce, or the spastic flows of the G.O.O.D-ish “Django.” But album’s core sentiment lands dead-center on “Gaston Two09nin”, via a Tupac soundbite: I feel cheated, because instead of me fulfilling my prophesy I have to start one. Instead of me carrying on the empire I have to build one. And that’s a hell of a job for any youngster. A tall task indeed, but Well$ is off to a good start. - Matthew Tremmell, The FADER