Double-007’s name has been ringing out from the streets of North Memphis for the past several months and he is one of many young rappers coming out of the M that has an incredibly bright future and already is putting together complex flows and creating complex punchlines and wordplay that would make you think he is a much more seasoned veteran in the music making process than he actually is. He recently unloaded a new mixtape titled 223 that is fourteen-tracks in length and shows off a lot of the sides to Double-007’s artistry and includes him rapping on a bevy of beats from the most menacing, slimey instrumentals to straight up club-bangers.
“Perk Talk” is a particularly interesting instrumental to me with an almost hollow quality to the percussion that doesn’t hit nearly as deeply as some other Memphis 808’s but the instrumental made up for this lack of thump with its up-tempo nature that let 007 snap bar after bar. “Yeap” is a track where 007 takes a simple instrumental composed of a simple piano scale and skittering drums that he is able to walk-over, delivering bar after bar like they are the .223 bullets that he raps about so frequently. “Arabia” was an interesting cut where 007 floats over a Middle Eastern guitar loop that sounds like snake-charmer music almost but is brought together with Mackhouse’s dark percussive elements which balanced some of these playful melodic elements out. “007” was a song that first put 007 on to many people’s radars and much like Li Heat’s track by the same name he reworked the James Bond theme for a fast paced track for 007 to talk his intimidating shit at any opps or naysayers.
Double-007 declares that he is the Memphis rookie of the year, much like Ja Morant, who the song is titled for and I really hope that the Memphis artists are going to continue to shout Ja out so frequently as he and the artists in Memphis are the future of a city with tremendous history. “2 Many” is powered by an instrumental with a large amount of break-beats influence making for one of the strangest beats a Memphis rapper has jumped on this year and it seems like the trend of hopping on complicated or confusing beats is making its way to Tennessee and I for one am all for it as it is a way for the most talented artists to differentiate themselves from their counterparts who might need a more open beat to be able to speak their minds. He remixed Gucci Mane’s iconic track “Bricks” (the No Jumper intro song for my jits) and walked all over this classic instrumental and I love to see this new generation of young talent paying homage to the masters of this style. 223 comes to a close with the emotionally raw and honest track “Life” where 007 updates his fans and friends on whats going on in his life now, from trapping to dodging death and police to his newfound rap career and the local fame that comes with it that is totally new to him. Double-007 is without question easily one of the most talented young rappers in all of Tennessee and I cannot wait to hear him develop as an artist and songwriter and begin to possibly even start including some more melodic aspects in his music.