King Kade ft. Yelohill & Hit-Town – “Hot Topic” (Prod. Mike Hector)

By: Shamus Hill

Quincy’s King Kade returns to the Graduation Music site today alongside Yelohill and Hit-Town with a highly-energetic track titled “Hot Topic”.

While the majority of his discography may be rooted in exceptional vocal work, King Kade utilizes “Hot Topic” to showcase his ability to rap. He’s proven to be one of the more versatile artists to hail from Massachusetts, and tends to bless his listeners with a little something new on each release. Both Yelohill and Hit-Town compliment Kade seamlessly here, as the group glides effortlessly over some well-structured production at the hands of Mike Hector. Show King Kade some love as he’s showing no signs of slowing pace anytime soon.

Listen to “Hot Topic” below:

PLAD Fine$$e – “Pac-Man” (Prod. Mike Hector)

By: Eden Bekele

Roxbury rapper PLAD Fine$$e teams up with Mike Hector to produce his latest track, “Pac-Man”. After an almost year-long hiatus, the rapper has been on a roll, with this release and his single “Pressure”, which released not even a month earlier, the rapper is quite literally applying pressure.

For those that are familiar with Fine$$e from his earlier work, “Pac-Man” shows consistency and excitement. The track is only two minutes and five seconds, but it packs a tremendous punch. His inherent confidence shines through with his melodic style and effortless flow, making this track an instant hit. While I was left wishing for a little more from the track, it’s fair to say that the rising talent is working and we’ll be satisfied soon.

From Roxbury to the world, Fine$$e is on the rise and we look forward to seeing what else he has in store.

Listen to “Pac-Man” below:

King Kade – ‘Grow Up, Go Love Something’ EP

By: Shamus Hill

King Kade was first introduced to Graduation Music readers a few weeks back with the release of his Mike Hector-produced song, “ASAP”. He returns today with Grow Up, Go Love Something, a beautifully-orchestrated EP that helps bring the best out of some of Massachusetts’ most notable talents.

Listening through this project is reminiscent of reading a good book — elements of each individual chapter stand-out on their own whilst maintaining a seamless flow throughout. Mike Hector, Pettros, and Halfway were in charge of production on Grow Up, Go Love Something, and each put their best foot forward to achieve a formidable sonic foundation for the entirety of the EP.

Revolving around the various stages of falling in-and-out of love, King Kade takes a pop-infused route towards getting his feelings off of his chest. Featured on Grow Up, Go Love Something are Pettros, FAbzabove, and Patrick Michel, who align with King Kade’s sound in an extremely harmonious fashion. Anyone who’s been reading Graduation Music will recognize FAbzabove and Patrick Michel by name, with their features on this project being some of their most-prominent pieces of work yet.

Grow Up, Go Love Something puts King Kade’s musical capabilities and relentless work ethic on full display. Show the Quincy-native some love as he’s set to have a promising 2019.

Listen to Grow Up, Go Love Something below:

King Kade – “ASAP” (Prod. Mike Hector)

By: Shamus Hill

Quincy-native, King Kade, makes his debut on the Graduation Music site today with a Mike Hector-produced track titled “ASAP”.

Following a recent move to LA, King Kade has been devoted towards maintaining a successful career in music. “ASAP” serves as evidence that he’s been on the right track, with this release being one of his most solid to-date. The combination of King Kade’s melodic presence and the vibrant production make for an extremely well-rounded release.

Listen to “ASAP” below:

Pistola + Mike Hector – “Gang Shit”

By: Shamus Hill

Pistola and Mike Hector just dropped “Gang Shit”, and subsequently the duo have already set the bar high for Massachusetts artists in 2019. The last time they linked up the pair blessed listeners with “Fiji”, one of the best tracks to come out of Boston in 2018, and it’s safe to say that they’re 2 for 2 after listening to their latest release.

Both Pistola and Mike Hector haven’t wasted a moment with regard to building up their resumes over the course of these last few years, with each doing a tremendous job at shining a light onto the levels of talent that are coming out of the Bay State at the moment. Hector cooks up a flawless beat on “Gang Shit”, and is quickly followed-up with some addictive Pistola flows. Anyone that’s listened to the Dorchester-native’s music will find themselves playing this track over-and-over again. We can only be hopeful that Mike Hector and Pistola will continue to work together in the future, as it’s become overwhelmingly apparent that these two have a unique chemistry between each other.

Listen to “Gang Shit” below:

Artist: Pistola

Production: Mike Hector

Donald Grunge – “CowboyTalk”

By: Seamus Fay

From “Guitar Grunge” back in July to “Snake In My Boot” last month and most recently, “Henny Sippa“, 2018 has been a monumental year for Donald Grunge. One release after another, he’s been honing in on his craft, and as a result, we’ve seen some of his most creatively ambitious releases to date in recent months. Needless to say, Grunge is on a win streak right now, and today, he takes all of this energy and puts it toward the release of his long-awaited, highly-anticipated new project, CowboyTalk.

Taking on a Western theme, this tape is eccentric from the cover art all the way to the final seconds of its last song. Grunge pours his heart out into 7 highly-passionate, energetic cuts, leaving it all on the court as he puts forth a noticeably refined version of the “on my own terms” artistry that we’ve grown to love over the years. With production at the hands of local talents including Mike Hector, David Walker, JORD4NEVERDIED, Chris Tophr, Jonny Doobs, Maka, and Humbeats, CowboyTalk picked on a dream team of names to make up its roster, and without a doubt, it paid off. Donald Grunge is here, and he’s here to stay.

StreamCowboyTalk at the link provided below:

Artwork by @gregisonfire

Donald Grunge – “Snake In My Boot [Prod. Mike Hector)]

By: Seamus Fay

Looking back at some of the Massachusetts artists who really proved their worth in 2018, Donald Grunge needs to be at the top of the list. The eclectic, hyper-creative rising talent never fails to trust his ear for making great music, and consequently, this characteristic has led to some truly impressive additions to Grunge’s catalog in recent months. Today, en route to the 11/30 release of his new project, Donald Grunge is making sure that fans control their anticipation, using an appetizer of a single entitled “Snake In My Boot” to do the trick as we count down the days until the full course.

Produced by none other than Mike Hector, this track uses a simplistic melody and bass-heavy, hard-nosed drum patterns to lay the ground for Grunge’s ranging set of cadences. As always, this choice of production brings out the best in Grunge, as he rides the instrumental with a wide variety of tones and flows to match such compelling lyricism. “Snake In My Boot” proves that we’re about to receive Grunge’s finest work to date, and personally, I can’t wait.

Mixed & Mastered by @BradFeeneyProd

NSL – “Smooth Boy” [Prod. Mike Hector]

By: Seamus Fay

Graduation Music always takes pride in discovering brand new artists that we haven’t covered before, and today, we have a real treat as we introduce an artist going by the name NSL to our pages. Hailing from Boston, this rising talent is certainly a gem that deserves to be discovered, showcasing his widely ranging skillset and lyrical prowess on his brand new, Mike Hector-produced joint, “Smooth Boy”. And trust me, if you were looking for a hustle-minded anthem to soundtrack the summer, look no further than this song.

What makes “Smooth Boy” so special is just how vivid NSL paints his lifestyle within the lyrics. No details are left out, and from the motivation behind hustling to the graphic situations that hustling brings to fruition, this track is a display of honesty and storytelling in its rawest state. Aside from the lyrics, however, it is also important to mention the fact that NSL was set up to win with stellar production from none other than Mike Hector. The key-led, hard-hitting beat provides the perfect atmosphere for a tale of determination, and that’s just what fans receive with “Smooth Boy”.

Listen to the latest from NSL at the link below!

Pistola – “Fiji” [Prod. Mike Hector]

By: Seamus Fay

Throughout the past few weeks, Pistola has been making his city proud (as always) with the widespread success of his single, “P.I.S.T.O.L.A.”, premiered via ELEVATOR. Now with over 500k views and an incredible amount of love being shown to the young artist’s nonchalant yet hard-hitting style, Stola is back yet again with another hit to prepare us for his forthcoming debut project. Today, he hits Graduation Music with the Mike Hector produced banger, “Fiji”, and it may just be one of my personal favorite tracks of his to date.

For starters, we should make it clear that Mike Hector was the perfect producer to hop on the boards for this one. Previously residing in Boston but now based in LA, Hector has rapidly built up his beat portfolio with credits on a number of well-known songs, the most notable being Kendrick Lamar’s “GOD” off of DAMN. Taking this unmatched style and creating an airy, melodic atmosphere for Stola to float through, “Fiji” watches the acclaimed producer declare his versatility in an incredibly impressive way.

This track is a perfect example of the potential that Pistola has, and with the hot streak that he has been on throughout the past few months, I feel confident in saying that the Boston native’s debut project is about to be something truly special. His seamless style fits with perfect precision over the sound of this single, making for an anthem to keep on repeat as we watch Pistola continue to rise to the top. “Fiji” is yet another hint of the heat on the way, so be sure to give it a listen below and show some love to what could be the next star out of Boston. All in all, Pistola’s got one.