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Buffalo, New York’s own Jay Exodus is making a big impact in the rap game this week with his new single “Stories & Lessons” featuring Boldy James. In it, he reflects on the conflict between maintaining a romantic relationship amid his life in the streets, whereas the “No Fighting” spitter matches this thematic energy by speaking on his bond with his mother. Overall, both verses are pretty melancholic in their lyrical focus and delivery, but it doesn’t take away from the vividness or compelling quality of their titular experiences. While it’s by no means un-treaded territory, they focus on the execution to paint meaningful pictures of their lives.

Furthermore, the beat provides a lush bed of sampled instrumentation for Jay Exodus and the Penalty Of Leadership MC to slide over engagingly. There are a lot of curious and wondrous woodwind elements popping up all throughout “Stories & Lessons,” plus some chimes, ethereal synth pads, and some vocal sampling toward the end. But these are simply additions to the instrumental’s root combination of crisp, warm percussion, watery electric guitar chords, and horn additions. Even though seeing the elements on paper may sound nondescript as far as rap beats go, it matches the tender, conflicted, and moody subject of the song. It’s definitely a case of two good elements coming together to make something greater out of it.

Jay Exodus’ “Stories & Lessons” With Boldy James: Stream

Meanwhile, this follows an incredible run of features and moves from Boldy James as of late, including his recent feature on Ransom and Harry Fraud‘s “Live From The Roxy” and “They Vouching” with Your Boy Posca. As for Jay Exodus, we can’t wait to see what he offers us next, as this is a really promising and well-crafted display of his talent. If you haven’t heard “Stories & Lessons” yet, find it on your preferred streaming service and let us know what you think down in the comments section. Also, find some notable lines below and, as always, check back in with HNHH for more amazing music drops around the clock.

Quotable Lyrics
Only thing you wanted from me was to put your love first,
Young and dumb and too infatuated with how the streets work,
Hopping out on n***as with the gang and hear the cash grab,
Had to get them n***as, when we seen them, we had caught them lack’