Razor Tongue Media

Aeon Raps is Full Grizzly on Trust The Process

Razor Tongue Media relaunched earlier this year and when we did, there were a few stellar 2020 projects in rotation that we wish we would have arrived in time to write on.  One of those was est twenty‘s bad hands.  Comprised of long time rap partners Aeon & Savelli who added their homie and NW rap vet Cory Tate to complete the trio, est twenty found a potent combo in amped beats coupled with clever wordplay mixing things like video game and pop culture witticism with wack MC smashing.  

That formula continues here with Aeon Raps quickly pivoting from the group record with his solo album Trust The Process.  This time around Aeon not only is the focal point behind the mic stand, but he also produced and mixed the project in its entirety.  This can definitely be a bad idea.  Some artists worst projects are the ones where they tried to do everything themselves but lack the talent in all facets to leave a powerful mark.  But this is not the case here.  Aeon rolled the dice knowing he was going to see his number on the table and this is how his fifth project Trust The Process was born.

When I was a kid, I didn’t understand it, but I really loved rap/
There was a time when honestly I could say I wished I was Black/
And now I’ve grown up but I know that really that was appropriation/ 
So I wanna tell ya I’m sorry for being a guest in the house with no invitation/
Took what I saw on the tv and wore it and modeled my life after/
Didn’t see how in the day to day all of my heroes were having their rights trampled”

These are the opening bars to the album’s first track “Disclaimer”, an important articulation on Hip Hop and Aeon’s presence in it that white rappers everywhere should take notes on.  With so many people of pale taking up the BLM fight, while commendable, some of them are not realizing that this undertaking doesn’t mean they know what it means to be Black.  This fight has been going on for much longer than any of us have ever been around for and no amount of protesting or marching will ever be able to erase the fact that those not of color can walk away to normalcy at any time.  Aeon wisely understands his place as a white artist in a culture built by African-Americans and “Disclaimer” establishes that knowledge firmly.  It is probably one of the most fitting and relevant openings to an album I have ever heard.  I talked with Aeon and he had this to say about the track:

“‘Disclaimer’ came about after I had finished the entire project. I decided, like many other artists, to put a stop to promoting music and clogging up feeds with messages other than direct support for BLM and those fighting racial inequality in this country. I let my project sit for a few weeks, and upon going back to listen to it, I felt like it was missing a message of solidarity that I wanted to convey. I called it ‘Disclaimer’ and decided to put it first because I wanted it to be known, that despite all the bragging and flaunting and boasting that I do on the project, that I deeply respect and appreciate the culture and what my place is in it. That song was one of those songs that just flies out of the pen because I knew it was just something I really needed to say.

– Aeon Raps

With that honest assessment laid out, Everett’s Aeon gets back to the recipe on the next track.  “Run It” is that hyped up, full energy type banger that we were fortunate to soak up on the est twenty record.  Aeon demonstrates that he knows this lane not only as a rapper, but as a producer as well.  The beats slap you in your nostrils throughout and probably none more than “Jackpot”.   That’s the type of track that will have me bouncing around and ready to slapbox my kids. 

That energy is all over Trust The Process and its evidence that Aeon understands how to keep that vibe on peak.  Sometimes its good to just amp up and aggro out with the beats bumping in your whip.  But there are deeper things to discuss here and on “Not Much”,  Aeon along with Savelli and Nobi gas about using self-doubt and broken friendships as motivation and finding focus in the chaotic times of today.  And on “Overtime”, Aeon takes listeners on a drive of reflection as he analyzes the road to where he is now and the weight he carries on his shoulders.  This whole album has dope hooks, but none as strong as the one here.  It’s that type that will have you contemplating with a bottle at 1 or 2 in the a.m. on a worknight.

Trust The Process also features Chris Kemp, Cory Tate, and Coup D. Santana all dropping heat that you need to get hip to.  Tate especially murks “This a Body” with a closing verse that I’m sure left the booth in ashes once the track was done.   Do yourself a solid and check it and the whole project out at the streamers below.

Subscribe to Our Mailing List and Get First Dibs on Cool Shit

* indicates required