Tsu Surf Newark Review: Stellar

Recognized as one of the best battle rappers today, Tsu Surf amazed music fans with the release of his four-minute track, “Cocaine Paradise,” capturing the struggles, violence and horrors of the city he grew up in.

Four years later, his newest studio album, “Newark,” delivers a well thought out lyrical portrait of that same city. Surf takes a look back at his youth when he roamed the streets of one of the toughest neighborhoods in New Jersey and shares his personal maturity as a man who made it out.

After releasing several mixtapes over the past few years, mostly pertaining to underground listeners, Surf has finally created something that even mainstream audiences can’t help but appreciate.

Surf displays his creative storytelling ability as he depicts his trials, tribulations and experiences growing up in Newark, New Jersey. ”Newark” is mixed with rhythmic, soft flowing and sometimes fast paced heavy instrumentals that draw listeners into Surf’s world.

The 54-minute project is backed up by powerful and quotable lyrics that paint a vivid image of Surf’s hometown and draws out his pride, passion, and love for his former stomping grounds. In the album’s intro, the city is simply described as, “A place where everybody sins and an enemy can look like a friend.”

The album includes features from rappers like Joe Budden, Jadakiss and Styles P. “Newark” has impressive vocals from singers Emanny and Luccie Fontaine, both with smooth voices that add another dimension to Newark’s hip hop heavy foundation.

Two tracks that offer a harsh description of Newark are “Keep praying” and “Loyalty.” Both tracks give off the vibe that would fit perfectly into the end credits of a tear-jerking movie. Through controversial lyrics like, “Bury me with the .40, no disrespect but I never met this so called Jesus,” Surf captures the harsh realities of the city’s streets.

Every track is well transitioned with a few standouts that don’t contribute to the overall theme of the album. “Her problems” and “Table for two,” are two great songs that can stand alone as singles, but don’t contribute to the dark gritty story that “Newark” is about.

“Newark” doesn’t just give off the vibe of the classic Drama/Gangster films of the ‘90s like Menace 2 Society and Boyz N the Hood, tackling every aspect of urban minority communities in America. “Newark” offers a view beyond an artists’ mind, giving an inside look of the heart and a life that is obviously pained by loss and regret.

The album is collimated with a back-and-forth conversation between Surf and Joe Budden. Surf receives advice from Budden on all aspects of life which both New Jersey rappers have relatable experience in. From battles with personal demons, dealing with family troubles and learning to manage the pressures of success in the album’s most appealing track, “Conversations.”

With “Newark,” Surf compiles a body music that has a purpose and hip-hop lovers can bob their heads to or sit back with the volume on max and simply enjoy. Straying away from his previous trap/hip-hop influenced mixtapes, this 15-track album takes listeners on a journey through the rappers past experiences and allows for an opportunity to view Newark, New Jersey from the perspective of one of the city’s best upcoming artists

There has always been a constant debate over whether battle rappers can actually make quality music, through “Newark,” Surf proves that he is one of the few that can do it both a battle rap stage and on a track.