The Boy King is back!
The man himself needs no introductions on the scene, having honed his skills for the past decade almost, starting on Grime and progressing to Rap, he is now one of the top MC’s in the game. With his distinctive style of rapping and delivery being second to none, his lyrical ability has been critically acclaimed as one of the best and his production selection is always on point. Please step forward Youngs Teflon who, yesterday, released his new EP ‘The Jungle Book’.
Tef has been keeping busy of late, dropping a succession of tracks and videos such as “Run DMC” (taken from the EP, but more about that in a moment), gracing us with a fire “Daily Duppy”, dropping the street anthem “King’s Speech” and more recently, the very wavey “Rolling Stone” to name but a few.
‘The Jungle Book’ is, once again, a testament to the progress in Tef’s sound and career, with every project different than the last in terms of subject matters, collaborations and sound design. I personally liked this new project a lot and I think any fan of UK rap will agree with me. Here’s a more in depth view track by track.
1- “Run DMC”
Kicking off the EP with a melodic and melancholic vibe on some heart felt bars about growing up and other tales of yesteryears, Tef paints the perfect picture with his skilled pen, taking us on a journey right from the start. A very honest track where he talks about the realities he has faced whilst using his excellent word play with an array of different flows to choose from.
“Smoking on a Puff Daddy, staying under cover from the CID, I use my face cos they don’t see ID, Versace polo I’m B.I.G, I’m Flava Flav I’m public enemy number 1… we all know YT Run DMC”.
This is a very reflective tune we can all zone out to with the typical Tef style to add to the mix, check out the video here.
2- “WDYM”
Taking us into the next tune from the EP is the very catchy “What Do You Mean?!”. If you had the chance to be at the SWAG LDN closing party at Pop Brixton to witness the very special surprise performance from Tef and Renz, you would have had the pleasure of hearing a snippet of this live from the man himself. I love tracks that start off with just a kick and a snare and a hint of cheeky melody, just makes me think a madness is about to kick off! Here we have Tef showing off his flows again, fermenting them in a dark and bassy atmosphere. Once the heavy bass drops on this subtle and effective production, it’s all hands in the air shouting out “What Do You Mean!?”. With way too many punchlines to mention, but expect Jimmy Conway to deliver the usual flyness with impeccable delivery on this. Watch out for when the beat changes into a broken beat-meets-sub-bassline riddim at the end to officially shut down the ting!
This is to be played very loud in the whip with windows down, preferably driving slow through a high street of some sorts.
“Remember when the industry didn’t wanna give me a retweet, now I got your favourite rapper all in my DM begging for a feat”.
3- “OK” feat Scorcher
OK! So… you know them ones where you hear the start of the beat and you start banging your chest and doing a Rick Ross-esque type of skank? No? (OK, maybe it’s just me then). Well, this is one of those bangers. The anthem-like heavy hitting production drops to the words of Tef spraying,
“My motivation is broke days, back when I had no swag, I had no fade, I had no game, I’m good now, things working out, I’m OK!”
This, for me, is definitely a go-getters anthem, with an aggressive Tef taking control and slapping it sideways on every line and flow, utilised for this new street anthem! A rearview into how things were back then, and how they are now, with the bottom line of the message being all about the progression made in the right direction.
“Man be asking for the old Tef’, tell em’ buy my old tapes”
With the return of an another stalwart in the UK scene jumping on this in Scorcher, only adding to the value of this banger with Scorch spraying the place up with his great delivery and cheeky punchlines as per usual (we wouldn’t expect anything less). BANGER ALERT!
4- “Girl Of My Dreams”
It wouldn’t be a Youngs Teflon project without a very honest tune for the ladies, and what better way to do it than to collaborate with the very talented Renz. Renz opens up with his unique voice, cooked to perfection on a bed of sweet and dreamy laced synths and drums before Tef takes over with his excellent abilities to make you feel a track like this. Continuing the summer of love on this tune, he talks about the girl of his dreams, drifting though blurred lines about whether or not this girl actually exists. Cleverly executed to make you think about it, this tune is opened to interpretation. “Girl of my dreams, girl of dreams… or is she just a girl in my dream?”. The descriptive lyrics just show how much depth he has in his repertoire and the clever concept make this a very interesting listen, even for a rap aficionado like me who isn’t a particular fan of ladies tracks. The duo deliver effortlessly for what is one of the best tracks on an already very solid body of work.
5- “Separate”
Next up on the track list is “Separate”, a double time drummed themed production that will make your head nod violently from the start. Tef stresses on the fact that he wants to separate himself from the rest, always keeping in that positive forward way of thinking.
“They don’t really care about us, there’s a thousand yutes just like me, I’ve gotta separate it’s a must, I gotta separate from the hate, gotta separate from the fuss, can’t wait til’ I buss’ and you can’t hear enough of my name and you’re tasting my dust”
… Basically saying what a lot of people go through when they try to change their ways and become successful- you have to part ways with the negativity holding you back. Whether it be jealous hangers on or just destructive mentalities. A very brave and honest track that made me reflect on my own ways and how I should go on moving forward with my future plans and goals. This one will not only educate, but will also give you a deeper insight into Tef’s mind.
6- “Promised Land”
You know the saying “save the best til’ last”? Yeah, well this is one of those moments (in my personal humble opinion). The beat kicks off on a very “boom bap” classic tempo but with a melodic modern twist. The passion and pain here is undeniable, the way Tef raps over this masterpiece of a beat is perfect. Any fan of Rap will recognise this on a universal level as a great hip-hop track. From the production, the delivery, the bars to the emotion and subject matter. A very reflective song where Tef talks about hope after pain, that anyone who has been through the same things will all relate to.
“The judge wanna send us to the bloody can, the plug just wanna see the rubber bands, the opp’s wanna see us lackin’ get the upper hand, but trust one day we’re gonna see the promised land”.
This track is more felt than heard, if you know what I mean, such is the charge of emotion and meaning behind it. Listen for yourselves, as I can’t really explain the deepness of it with just a few words. Personal favourite from the EP, goosebumps!
In hindsight and after listening to ‘The Jungle Book’ many times in a row, (yes, I study the ting fully!) I think this is a great project. With some extremely well worked tunes, from the productions to the lyrics, and is all very well put together. Over the years this is the kind of quality we have learned to expect from Youngs Teflon and ‘The Jungle Book’ is no exception; apart from the fact that this has maybe surpassed anything released by YT before.
This EP shows maturation in his sound and an overall natural progression which can only benefit the scene by adding to the quality. I was more than happy to pay for this, as well as being happier to invest my time into listening to it over and over again and writing about it. Tef definitely captures and captivates with this opus. The bar has been set high with this release.
The boy king has spoken, long live the king.
‘The Jungle Book’ EP is available now on iTunes.