Over the last few years, Perth-based hip-hop duo Otiuh have emerged as frontrunners of the city's next generation in rap music, with a stream of consistently top-tier singles ever since their debut EP Downlights back in 2017 keeping them one step ahead of the pack. This year, however, the pairing have really stepped it up: They shared a handful of singles across the first half of the year before diving into a six-track Cold Recreation EP that encapsulated their growth and evolution as musicians on the rise, while in their first single since - August's Interest Free - they proved that they're not slowing down.
However, while they may be releasing music at a hefty pace, it's not at the jeopardy of class. If there's one thing Otiuh have shown us over the years, it's that they're able to balance quality with quantity - a difficult feat, but one they've been able to pull off with a high calibre as they navigate the realms of hip-hop, R&B and soul music often within the same release.
Their new single Daytona Rolling - premiering on Pilerats today ahead of its greater release this Friday - is a hard-hitting bite of bouncy hip-hop that falls within the GoldLink-comparable realm; its hard-hitting ferocity and refinement a step outside of most of Otiuh's work to-date, but one that seemingly perfectly fits within the world they've built for themselves. "It’s psychedelic, it’s high octane, it’s braggadocious and it’s in your face," they say on the single. "We are hoping people will hear this and realize we can swim with the big boys & girls in the Australian hip hop landscape."
The latter is something that really shines within Daytona Rolling. While the duo have spent much of their time exploring what happens when you unite Perth hip-hop with shimmering R&B and sounds largely left-of-centre, Daytona Rolling is a shamelessly fierce hip-hop track that sees them take it up a notch, and the results are really quite incredible.
Dive into the track below:
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