Nashville’s Hip Hop scene has been given more light over recent years. For years the city has been glamorized as the home of Country music while other genres of music have been cast in it’s shadow despite the city’s rich history of African American voices. Classic Williams is here to change all of that. Classic Williams’ newest project “Summer Pack 2020” which is a sequel to his stellar offering “Summer Pack” released in the summer of 2019 is a bop heavy marvel from start to finish. Comprised of seven songs recorded during the beginning of the quarantine period this year; Classic along with producer collaborators Jordan Bartlett (who has toured with the pop duo and Nashville scene darling’s Cherub) DJ Rawtune, Aaron “Opie” Howard, and artist/producer Herschel Lamont create the sounds and set the stage for Classic’s lyrical and melodic talents to run wild. Opening up with the raucous trap influenced single “Droptop” produced by DJ Rawtune; Classic sets the tone for the summer esthetic and invites you on a wild ride through his city. Recently in an interview with Atlanta’s Dirty Glove Bastard, Classic explained how despite 2020 being a tough year for everyone he wanted to restore the feeling of summer and also speak on relevant topics affecting the world at large.This leads us into the triumphant jewel of the album “Black Lives” produced by Jordan Bartlett. In this song Classic gives his vocal support to the Black Lives Matter movement. Over a bluesy guitar riff Classic begins to paint the picture of what it’s like being a Black man living in the southern states of America during its current racial climate. Standouts like “Covid 19 Remix” produced by Jordan Bartlett with it’s distorted, almost apocalyptic feel are simply fun and exciting to listen to. The song features Louisville-Nashville transplant Jung Youth most notably known for his single “Only One King” of NFL Thursday Night Football game; and up and coming wordsmith K.I.N.G the MC. who is definitely someone to look out for; both of whom hold their own and add various textures to the song with Classic laying the groundwork for this stellar collaboration. He’s a jack of all trades stylistically, which is a fitting analogy of the diverse cultural movement of artists coming from Nashville even though albeit unbeknownst to the majority of the country. If Classic Williams is the sign of things to come then that will change very soon. Summer Pack 2020 is a solid and cohesive project and we look forward to more to come.
