Of 21st century musical eras, the late-2010s “SoundCloud rap” felt the most special to me. Armed with a cracked FL studio files and awful snowball microphones, a whole crop of young artists reinvented hip-hop through unconventionality. 

Melodic flows, spacey production and punk-ish attitude changed my perspective on music. It’s argued SoundCloud rap produced meaningless garbage, which is sometimes true. Yet, SoundCloud rap emphasized raw youthful energy, creating headphone-filling anthems with irreplaceable ambiance. Sure, they weren’t lyrically potent, but albums like Playboi Carti’s “Die Lit,” Lil Uzi’s “Luv is Rage” series or Lil Yachty’s “Lil Boat” are classics because they’re just so damn fun. 

There’s a beauty in uncomplicated music. I know you’re not thinking of the socioeconomic state of the world all the time. Listen to the noise, have a good time and turn your brain off! Doesn’t that feel good?

While Carti, Uzi, Yachty and several others continued on to mainstream appeal, several formative SoundCloud artists remain relatively underground. Enter SahBabii, who’s underrated to the point that I pastorally preach the good word of his discography, and his newest release “Saheem,” constantly. A SoundCloud innovator, SahBabii never quite broke into public consciousness. That’s unfortunate, because “Saheem” is the most refreshing work from a SoundCloud alum I’ve heard recently.

In a subgenre plagued with awful mixing (see “Eternal Atake 2”), “Saheem” has a svelte sound which is remarkably impressive. Every aspect, down to the snaps, is fully audible. SahBabii takes full advantage of the album’s clean canvas to paint with addictive melodies, clever flows and subtle, yet invigorating, vocal inflections. Slithering through tracks like “Viking,” “Kodak” and “Sylvan Rd Ridin Down Dill,” SahBabii commands the ethereal beats of “Saheem” for fully fleshed out, wall-to-wall energy.

“All The Way” and “Wakiki” sound gleefuly like Young Thug’s “Jeffrey” in the best way possible. SahBabii’s lyrics, although grossly hypersexual, are quite quick-witted and fun. Sometimes he approaches Drake levels of eyeroll, like on “Mirror Picz.” If that’s your thing go ahead, if not, I get it. Just don’t play it in front of your parents.

I like albums that sound like their covers, and “Saheem” encapsulates being shirtless against a beautiful sunset. “Saheem” is gorgeous, and a testament to SahBabii’s work ethic. Releasing the most complete album of a discography this deep into a career showcases SahBabii’s cares about artistry. Although the “SoundCloud rap” era came and went (and if it hadn’t, “Eternal Atake 2” killed it), SahBabii is still kicking down the door. “Saheem” undoubtably deserves recognition, and ideally my Dickinsonian article will help. Fantastic listen.