Verbalz: HYPE
Visualz: ByLwansta
You’re Absolutely Right
So this is ByLwansta’s 8th musical project and 2nd “official” musical release called You’re Absolutely Right (YAR) which (from the moment you press play) feels rejuvenating and at the same time destructive too.
An implosion is what we can call it right? We’re absolutely right! Are we really? Who knows? SA hip hop’s culture has never really been keen on opening up to the possibilities that maybe we’ve never really been right all along. Perhaps we’ve never really figured out our existence in this global cultural phenomenon. Because after really thinking hard about our growth, it seems that the effects of “imitation” have kind of been our core features of identity for a while. Perhaps we’re confused or even delusional, but at least ByLwansta has always stood for reminding us about our innermost thoughts, feelings and anxieties of true self projection. The ability to articulate what we proudly know as a community to being unoriginal and later letting us scorn him for rapping out our cultures insecurities, revealing that we are indeed so vulnerable to a (needed) resistance is pretty pitying. Of-course if one confides his/her opinions artistically, we will hate him/her for exposing our nakedness during an evolutionary time of praises that consists of awesome wavey bomber jackets and exalting crowns. So when he (ByLwansta) turns his anger & truth into song, we hate him. However we all know the reasons for any sacrificial lamb. We are aware of the thin line between self-awareness and self-absorption but somebody has to do it, somebody has to suffer and somebody has to get beaten down for us to realize our own content’s impurities and lack of strength (maybe). Look the matter of the fact is this; for so many years ByLwansta has undeniably grounded his authenticity and on this second “official” project, he continues to scuffle up the harsh & mirrored abyss ladder. Absolutely…
“The idea for the project hit me some time earlier this year because the original idea I had was to drop a project called Go Play Outside where I would expand on my own journey in Durban and leaving home” – ByLwansta
Made-up of about 8 solid tracks, YAR is an ideal first-person perspective of an already uncommon hip hop dilemma.
“I was invited to a house party in Durban and I only knew about 3 out of 18 people there. A lot of the people were familiar with what I do, they had heard about me or had listened to music before. Probably an hour before the next day another gentleman came through (halfway intoxicated but you could take him seriously when he spoke) speaking about how they knew I could rap but I needed to make something that was going to make them want to turn-up and something that’s going to play on radio.” – ByLwansta
This might seem like some cliché distinction, but there has always been a doubt lurking around that ByLwansta would ever be the star of his own journey (ironically). Possibly the main reason why YAR gives off a parallel sense of expectation, more like where has this version of ByLwansta been? Answer? Here all along. YAR sounds like what happens when venting turns into a hymn or when an EP legit turns into an album, because by the time you reach track 2, the EP is already giving you blows with its production from the likes of Beatmochini, Champ’ Tile, ByLwansta himself and a whole lot more.
“I only learnt how to convert negative energy to positive from experience. I had to deal with, not necessarily hate, but being overlooked and having doors being closed right in front of me for almost my whole come-up.” – BlyLwansta
But here’s the twist. YAR is the most commercial ByLwansta sound you will probably rarely hear. The style is simply a sonic mixture, its angry, bouncy and also brings out some of ByLwansta’s most relaxed/skillful deliveries, spazzing out on tracks like ‘NORMVL Still’ and later turning up (yes turning up) on joints like ‘Stay St Home’ with Sipho The Gift.
“I feel like everything that’s happened between now and NORMVL has been essential. I’m not doing this sound to be different, I’m doing this because I want to” – ByLwansta
ByLwansta truly does find himself faced/tasked with the duties of a young adult, which require very mature decisions such as identifying with right and wrong. And If you had been sleeping on HYPE’s most aggressive rapper before than we doubt you’ll keep on making the same mistakes with this one. Praises…