Emcee Awon is back in grand style. Going for dolo, he teams up with usual suspect Phoniks, HDK. Ak and Rashard for this soul-inspired 13 track body of work titled Matte Black Soul. Despite having already dropping a solid project (Dephacation) earlier this year, Awon’s return is remarkable, and the beats here are dope and engaging which ultimately brings out the best in the man.

Digging this from start to finish. Totally recommend this!

Matte Black Soul is released via Phoniks and Awon’s indie label Don’t Sleep Records “Matte Black Soul” is the fourth full length project from Newport News emcee Awon. The Virginia rhyme sayer is coming off a successful multi-year run that saw him release two critically acclaimed albums alongside producer Phoniks; 2013’s nostalgic ode to street life “Return to the Golden Era” and 2014’s “Dephacation” with Virginia emcee Dephlow. With his newest offering, Awon comes from a more personal perspective, this time tackling increasingly complex songwriting concepts over a selection of heavily soul-influenced productions. The album features offerings from a team of producers including the aforementioned Phoniks, who contributes six tracks, alongside HDK, Ak, Rashard, and Awon himself. Songs such as “Escaping Youth”, which uses hair loss as a metaphor for aging and “Ying vs Yang”, that explores the mind of a stick-up man trading rhymes back and forth with his subconscious, show the maturity of the 34-year-old songwriter. With 13-tracks of smooth soul beats and lyrics covering a wide variety of topics, Awon has created a unique, cohesive project that expands the boundaries of his current catalog as well as hip hop music today.