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Benny The Butcher Names The MCs That Inspire Him

Though the process of ranking has always been a cornerstone of hip-hop discourse, opinions tend to hold a lot more credibility when they come from an authoritative source. Often times, those very sources are top tier, elite-level emcees — a testament to the mentality that real recognize real. It goes without saying that Benny The Butcher has earned his place among the game’s top tier spitters, a fact made wholly evident with the release of Burden Of Proof. That is if Tana Talk 3 and The Plugs I Met didn’t already make that fact abundantly clear.

Benny The Butcher

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Having secured collaborations with the likes of Eminem, Royce Da 5’9″, Black Thought, Ghostface Killah, Lil Wayne, Tip Harris, and more, one has to wonder when Benny’s name will carry such weight to rising emcees on the come-up. In the meantime, we had a chance to chop it up with The Butcher about the current rappers that inspire him.

“Freddie Gibbs,” he names first, showing major love to his Alfredo collaborator, with whom he worked on “Frank Lucas.” Russ gets the next selection; while that may prove surprising to some, it should be noted that Benny and Russ go way back, having collaborated on “I Thought You Got Me.” Not to mention the fact that Benny was originally supposed to open for Russ in a major stadium tour, though COVID-19 swept those plans aside with haste. “Conway too, I feel like sometimes he don’t get the credit,” continues Benny, looking within his own crew. “Who else? There’s a lot of us, man, we be knocking on the door. There’s a bunch of us.”

For more insight from The Butcher, including some of his bucket list collaborations, the history behind his Butcher moniker, and more, be sure to check out our complete interview with the Burden Of Proof rapper right here. Are you surprised by the rappers he named?

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Kyle Ashen’s sun-drenched recollection with new release “That Local Girl”

Kyle Ashen’s latest release, “That Local Girl,” is a gorgeous trip down memory lane, a country single that explores that golden glow of memory, like flipping through old photographs touched by salt air and summer sunlight. It’s warm, cinematic, and deeply relatable, a song about the kind of love story that never quite goes away, even as time moves on.

“That Local Girl” is filled with imagery that quickly takes the listener into a world they can walk right into. You got a blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl on a boardwalk street by the ocean, a souped-up truck driving through town, neon lights reflecting off the ocean breeze, and the electric innocence of young love burning in the background.

But under all that cutesy trapping is something more than that, longing. Some people, some places that leave permanent marks on Kyle Ashen and us know that. What’s so brilliant about this song is that it marries those two ideas, making love and hometown memory feel beautifully inseparable. Sometimes you miss a person. And with that person, you miss an entire version of life. “That Local Girl” is more than a country love song from Kyle Ashen. He is a living postcard from the past, sun-faded, bittersweet, and glowing with feeling. A reminder that summers pass by, but some memories stay with us forever.

Connect with Kyle Ashen on Spotify || Instagram || Facebook || Youtube

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ECHOFLIP inspires faith and fire with triumphant anthem on “Kingdom Rise”

ECHOFLIP marches forward with commanding purpose on “Kingdom Rise,” a single that not only demands attention but also commands it. Driven by pounding drums, soaring melodic textures, and full-conviction lyricism, the song arrives like a battle cry with the heart of worship. Bold and energized and spiritually charged from beginning to end.

“Kingdom Rise” is street realism meets kingdom vision at its heart. It’s got grit in its pulse but grace in its message as well. Each bar rings with resilience with ECHOFLIP, a record that embodies struggle, perseverance, and steadfast faith in the face of adversity. The result is music that is rooted in reality while reaching for something much larger.

What makes the single particularly compelling is how seamlessly it combines high-energy Christian trap with uplifting spiritual themes. The hard-hitting production has edge and urgency, and its faith-centered focus gives it soul. It’s motivational without being pushy. Worshipful without momentum loss, without losing authenticity. Ideal for trap gospel, inspirational rap, and urban playlists that aim to uplift as much as energize, “Kingdom Rise” delivers on all fronts. It moves the body, it sharpens the mind, it stirs the soul.

Connect with ECHOFLIP on Spotify