Austin, Texas’ Wiardon made his name years ago as a teenage producer with woozy beats tackled by the likes of Lucki and Baby Smoove, but he has really found his groove as a rapper-beatmaker hybrid. “Trackhawk” is a single from his upcoming self-produced album Road Music, and over its grainy yet breezy instrumental, he raps in a style that mixes post-Prodigy East Coast tradition with the slurred flows you can find everywhere from Detroit to Houston. It’s like he’s in the booth with a blunt in his mouth. Most often I like when his lines trail off as they go, a stylistic flourish that gives his songs that naturalistic feel.
With artists releasing songs at a fast and furious pace, it’s difficult for the average hip-hop head to keep track of it all—no matter how tapped in they are. That’s why we created The Ones, a daily post to highlight the song you need to hear.
Check out previous Ones, and listen to new rap from Wiardon and more on our Spotify playlist.
