By Alfonso Abreu
The New Jersey, rapper Papo2oo4’s expansive career has always tappped into the East Coast mixtape rap era of the 2000s. An era that is now looked at for aesthetics by younger generations, through Supreme and Max B collabs and Cam’ron Pinterest inspo-boards first before its music. His newest entry in a long slew of mixtapes, “Papaholic, Vol. 1”, is authentically East Coast without ever feeling like a stale imitation.
Throughout the tape, Papo2oo4 pulls from two eras of New York (NY) as he raps with a gruff voice similar to the late Pop Smoke with the effortless charisma of 50 Cent from his G-Unit mixtape days.
A highlight of the mixtape is the track “KD In Dyckman”, where he effortlessly let one liners about his celebratory lifestyle riddled with pop-cultures references fly by.
“I ain’t talking power imma get it/Then I’m going ghost/I ain’t trying to die too young/It’s big pop not no Post Malone/It’s me in Paris feel like Ye & Hov/Make em watch the throne”.
On the breezy “Torn Meniscus”, Papo2oo4 raps with a slow flow, lacking any urgency to drop any lessons learned in his exciting life. He makes you feel like a kid paying close attention to his elders, easily taking in any knowledge given to him.
The Y2K inspired tape is complemented by a layer of Evil Empire and Trap-A-Holics tags peering in and out. The production, handled by the tape’s main producer and frequent collaborator Subjxct 5, captures a familiar Y2K East Coast feeling with a present sound. The high-pitched chipmunk soul sampling on standout “Counter Strike” sounds like it was stored away on an old Just Blaze hard drive.
The outro “04 Range” truly showcases the longstanding chemistry the rapper and producer have together as Papo2oo4 effortlessly exhibits flyness as he delivers personal anecdotes over a flashy beat reminiscent of Dipset that gives you the impression that he must have a Roc-A-Fella chain tucked away somewhere. “Papaholic, Vol. 1” acts as a modern take on the dominant East Coast mixtape era that continues to live on through its music.