Album Review: Kayze – Renaissance

Over its seven songs, Renaissance sees Kayze hit a perfect balance between gritty hip-hop and its pop-facing cousin.

For the artist, Renaissance is the culmination of a group of releases called The Dialectic Series, ones where the artist places himself within a series of personal, societal, and philosophical situations that allow him to take stock of himself as a person. It gets him to this point, as he puts it, a “moment of clarity where observation becomes action and ego is surrendered to responsibility.”

Demons, where he is joined by Donn and Mu’Dogo, presents us with a doomy sonic vista, the vocals full of attitude, soon giving way to expressions of vulnerability and honesty. Hip-hop is rarely so exposing and explosive.

Midas Touch is the most pop-aligned track on Renaissance yet still hits hard, the beats especially exploring a terrain as dark and unforgiving as the lyrics. Again, the understated flow of the vocals let the lyrics make a weighty emotional impact, one that was unexpected and welcome.

The track titled Ego Trip is far from being that; initially full of braggadocio, Kyaze quickly turns that into something markedly reflective, what seems like a series of boasts evolving into a sensitive exploration of being willing to change.

The seven tracks come together in one overall message. Kyaze describes Renaissance as “a conceptually driven cinematic pop/hip-hop project that dissects the friction between performative modern culture and authentic personal accountability, delivering a raw, anthemic call to awaken from the digital matrix and take genuine action.”

That shines through in Change The World, where Kayze shifts from examining relationships to looking at the greater world around him, finding his own truth, wanting to live life to the fullest while trying to make the planet a better place for all of us. Yes, it’s a party track, but one with a positive message. Synthesis, by comparison, is more downtempo, all the while carrying a similar message – find yourself, and once you have the answer, nothing can stop you.

The album encompasses hip-hop at its most inclusive, from cloud rap to party/bounce-like bangers. Kayze uses them as a versatile vehicle with which to communicate ideas and ideals with the listener, harnessing the ability of music to change minds and, hopefully, like the song says, change the world.

Renaissance was released on the 19th of June and can be heard on Spotify and Apple Music. For other streaming options as well as artist updates, connect with Kayze on Instagram or Facebook.