Dici Releases Debut EP

If there’s ever been a group more impacted by the Covid-19 spread and it’s subsequent lockdown, it’s been the youth of Generation Z, but you gotta commend their gumption. These kids aren’t just gonna lay down and waste their time, at least not until they realize how precious it is. That’s the exact story of 17 year old rapper DICI. This kid really decided to make the best out of a bad situation and while he’s always been a fan of the likes of Eminem, Denzel Curry, Action Bronson, etc, it was a chance viewing of a Kenny Beats motivational video that transformed him from a fan into a creator.

Dici Website:  https://dicirecords.com/

With the eponymous release of his debut EP, Dici boasts a lot of personality and what he may lack in material that’s more deeply correlated to his life experience (for now) you can’t help but be won over by his charms and just the sheer enthusiasm this kid has for making music in a wholly un-ironic way. One of the best qualities of the records is how he makes the most out of nothing. It has a very homegrown texture and production to it that’s most likely due to the restraints of the pandemic keeping him out of more refined studios. With that said, what he’s accomplished on his own is nothing to scoff at, the beats are very minimalistic and you can almost taste the “I made this on my laptop” energy that exudes from the sound, but a catchy beat is a catchy beat and he’s got 6 of them to show you.

Now, as I mentioned earlier there’s the slight issue of him not having enough particular life experience to back his larger than life swagger. There’s plenty of vulgar lyrics that are pretty commonplace in the genre especially today and most of it is bragging about his money, his flow, and quite a bit of rampant sexual content that I won’t lie, comes across as a bit much. He’s a really talented kid and you can tell he’s happy to make music, but I can very much sense that with age, experiences and constant practice and experimentation, this kid is going to stand out. His flow is an 8 Mile-a-minute homage to that of Eminem, but vocally and oftentimes stylistically, I kept thinking of Jaden Smith, a peer of his that started off in a very similar fashion before refining his techniques and distinguishing himself.

I don’t think Dici just wants to be a star, but from the way he talks about himself now you’d probably doubt that, but I get the sense that he wants the respect, and he wants to learn. I mean, he made this with a computer and a gaming headphone and if you can’t respect that I don’t know what to tell you. Album highlights include the vibe-y “305-INTERLUDE” which I’d say captures him at his most confident with the most self-control, and the closer/bonus track Shibuya which most evokes his Eminem love in flow and beat, but is correlated to his upbringing as a biracial, multilingual young man. It’d be fun to see him experiment with that trilingual talent in the future and it’ll be exciting to see what this resilient multi-talented young man will go from here.

By Wyatt Kennedy, posted by Mindy McCall