What’s up readers? We’ve been pumped up around here at Lyrically Rap. We feel like we got a lot of good things going, meeting a lot of cool people, and learning some awesome things. Thanks to a little Instagram tip from the main man, Buggie, we think we’ve cracked a code long since confounding us.
We have a big increase of followers and engagements going on at Instagram and its really spurred on our motivation. I’ll be honest, Winter was a dark and dreary place there for a little bit. We struck out on a couple attempts to reach out to larger names. Stagnant waters abounded.
But now, I don’t know, we’re feeling good right now, and we hope you all are too. Thanks to awesome readers and good luck on Spotify, we’ve discovered some new artists and have some ideas in motion. Like I said, spirits are high.
One of those new artists we’ve recently discovered, was Hiway, the lyrical rap artist straight out of Humboldt. First off, I’ll say Hiway is cool as fuck. To those that have gotten to know us, they know we respect good character, great lyrics, and solid beats. Hiway has all three of those in excess. His humility and just cool vibes and flowing with my interview style, and intuitively we know got a winner in the rap game.
Hiway’s sound is fast, fun, and can carry a strong message dedicated to a great theme, much like in his release “Smile”. Hiway has songs for days. According to his Spotify discography, Hiway has been releasing music since 2008. 13 years in the rap game is a testament to his commitment to learn and achieve in the hip hop world. We spoke briefly on it.
“… I really took to the technical rap style and knew that with my upbringing I had to be witty because I couldn’t just rap about street shit although I’ve always loved street shit. I grew to be able to separate what I idolized from what I could contribute to the art form. From there it took years of me developing my style and finding my voice…”
Hiway via Instagram conversation
Hiway is very much his own sound. Yeah, there may be an Eminem essence of earlier days, but it’s the beats and message that give Hiway his own uniqueness. He focuses on music that puts people in a mood, and I agree, each song seems to have a different spirit about it. A fresh beat that’s not totally underground, and not totally mainstream. It’s almost like his bio on Spotify says:
“Somewhere between big city and rural, street-wise and book-smart, underground and mainstream, old school and new school, hard body bars and raw emotion, there is California-bred Hiway. The dividers in today’s rap game are all-too prominent, and he thrives on those lines; acting as, for all intents and purposes, a bridge. His niche lies in the ability to keep sonically relevant, while at the same time incorporating the essence and fundamentals of the art. Hiway may not be too much of one thing, but as the listener soon discovers, it is because he is unapologetically himself. Right or wrong, there will always be a uniqueness to his music, therefore, artists and fans alike are eager to connect. Sharing the stage with the likes of Tha Dogg Pound, Bone Thugs n Harmony, Tech N9ne, Dead Prez, Wu Tang Clan, Afroman and Parliament Funkadelic (just to name a few) over the years has helped grow the rapper into a seasoned vet. If you could mix the lyricism of a Nas with the speed of a Twista and the smoothness of a Drake, you would have Hiway. You would not be off base grouping him with today’s artists like Black Hippy, Flatbush Zombies or Dreamville. You may have spotted him in a World Underground (formally Team Backpack) cypher, performing at the infamous Gathering Of The Juggalos, or as far up as being featured on TMZ.”
Hiway’s Spotify Bio
Hiway mentions that his career has been a long road, and its not over yet, reaching a milestone in his latest album release, “Damaged Goods”. The album is dope top to bottom, but a song he performed with Tech N9ne and singer Braye Nicole, “Top Floor” is a straight banger, and a song we highlighted in our conversation.
“It was a long process to get what became the final product because I went into it knowing I also wanted to make a video for it. It meant the world to me because I had just lost my father and grandfather a couple months apart. My dad was a musician himself and Tech N9ne is where our two tastes in music met. I narrowed in on a beat, wrote my part, memorized before recording it to make it the best it could be. Then I reached out to Strange personally. We went back and forth through emails. They said Tech fucked with it, and he had his verse back in a few weeks. Then I got a call and they put him on the line and he told me my part made him go extra hard for his verse. I originally did the chorus myself but I knew to make the song as big as possible I had to get Braye to redo it. Nothing beats having a real singer who knows what they’re doing. We dialed it in then set up the trip to KC to shoot the video.”
Hiway via Instagram conversation
When we spoke, he mentioned his respect for fellow artist’s Braye Nicole’s sound. He was able to connect with her over a Locksmith competition. After submitting his own entry, Hiway browsed through the other participants and found Braye singing over the Locksmith beat.
“I was checking out the other entries and I came across this girl singing to it which was super dope to me. I messaged her and asked if she was down to collab and she said yes. “
Hiway via Instagram conversation on linking up with Braye Nicole.
Braye Nicole has now been included on several of Hiway’s songs, in which he feels that she adds an integral piece to all of them. Make sure to check out her music as well!
In the end, we’re writing for the fans and Hiway is doing much the same with his music. So we asked him to shout out to some his people.
” Shout out to my squad The Gas Station first of all. Shout out the general Nac One, all the other serious artists here in Humboldt, shout out to one of my best friends Shayla and our daughters.. and shout out everyone who cares enough to follow my music!”
Hiway via Instagram conversation
It was a pleasure to interview Hiway and get a chance to discover his music. I hope everyone out there feels the same and will take the time to like and share the social links in regards to this post. Its how we make a difference, and how we get names like Hiway, and all our other favorites, out there to the public eye. Let’s get this #missionHipHop and push that dope music.
Lyrically Rap 