Digdat may have been quiet in the drill scene for a while now but this week he’s been spotted making stateside links, as he’s just linked up with New York’s Lil Tjay for a remix for his huge single ‘FN’.
For a rapper to have such huge early success with their debut single Airforce – pretty much a ‘fresh out’ tune which catapulted to the mainstream and earned the record of being the first drill song to reach the Top 20 – was an unprecedented achievement. However, while he’s had some hard bangers and some incredible features since then (most notably his back to back banger with drill golden boy Loski, and his quick feature on the last Drillers x Trappers tape with Headie One and RV), as well as some loose singles, it seems that Digdat has been waiting in the trenches before he can come out and make his mark on drill.
In a surprise move (or perhaps not that surprising given his lowkey international ties that saw him model in an OVO lookbook), his next move was to link up with Lil TJay, part of the up-and-coming New York movement, who have been bringing the most hype to NY hip-hop since Bobby Shmurda was still the Hot Nigga.
What makes this move most surprising is that while Lil Tjay isn’t a stranger to UK drill beats (as seen in his last feature with Pop Smoke on War), the fact is he’s really more of a melodic artist. This move would be more expected of Pop Smoke, or another drill artist in the states like Sheff G or Sleepy Hallow. and even then, you'd expect an artist who has had some history with autotune to do the remix.
However, the collaboration has some surprising results and actually makes for a great remix.
Nothing changes for the most part on the original tune, as Lil Tjay keeps in his first verse and hooks, in his usual autotuned, Lil Durk inspired style. The original song was always a vibe and Lil Tjay gives a great performance, with his thick New York accent and youthful voice separating him from other artists in his lane. it's a sound that definitely originated more in the south, but lil tjay's high pitched voice and fast paced flow shows him to be more than just a young thug hopeful, which is impressive in his young age. However, instead of his second verse, Digdat is fitted in nicely. YOu'd expect him to be slapped on the end like other email remixes but there was definitely some planned out songwriting that smooths the song over.
Digdat mirrors sentiments expressed in a personal and very expressive song about the problems that come with success – memories of the life you used to live, the impacts of that life on your family as well as friends who have switched up. He sounds too natural on the powerful MB13 Beatz production, with the emotional chords complemented by the muted, wavy R&B samples in the background.
Digdat’s forte has always been his rapid fire, hard hitting flow, but this time he shows off his surprising talent for melody, slowing down his delivery to match the beat, and singing about his own struggles with the roads and what his life looks like after success. It’s a short verse but a promising one, packed with emotion to be honest he steals the show for me personally.
Hopefully this isn’t the last we see of Digdat’s more melodic side. When he finally delivers a project, a song like this wouldn’t be skipped – but who knows when that will be. If the US/UK linkup sounds interesting you can listen to the stream below.
Kommentare