Metro Zu is an influential and at-times salient art/music collective in several ways, but chiefly their importance stems from the fact that they are dope artists and presumably dope human beings. In a secondary manner, their seemingly unusual methods of success are not only important but worthy of academic research particularly in the way they have successfully adapted the Lil B #based model of underground achievement (I may have made that up but it’s a thing now/ I’m being extremely subjective). In terms of social media, Lofty305 and Posh God (aka Posh Dog fka Free Ba$e) have recognized the importance of interacting with fans on a one-to-one basis through twitter. Often times this doesn’t require much effort on their part, a positive message coupled with a follow-back and a few RT’s here and there can serve to endear young fans to an almost militant extent (see: #bitchmob #task force).
The crew have a prolific mixtape game – not quite Based God status yet but they are clearly determined to give him challenge in the pointless race for ‘Longest Discography’. Much like Lil B’s catalogue, certain portions of each mixtape meander into ‘almost unlistenable territory’ but there are always (roughly) one to five complete bangers on each tape, that make you feel all existential and post-everything about the rap game. They are Based in a lot more ways, but I don’t want this to become an essay about that, instead of a biographical piece about the individual members of this clique.
Lofty305 is basically just some cool dude who gets to chill, paint, watch anime, and make beats in Europe, Japan, and Miami (their hometown) on the regular. He and the man Posh Dog, have used their internet/social capital and music earnings to chase the perfect #travelmobbb bohemian lifestyle, even going so far as to: paint graf-inspired monsters on some rich dude’s Lamborghini at Miami’s Art Basel and to perform at a Boiler Room function in London England.
Posh Dog seems lowkey as hell, based on my limited observations through twitter, but fans of Princess Nokia (Wavy Spice) should recognize this dude’s stellar production work in her debut video ‘Bitch I’m Posh’.
Ruben Slikk (1/2 Proper Boys) is perhaps the most polarizing member of the clique due to his lyrical content. In many songs and tweets, Slikk aka Cumbo$$ aka Christ Boss, refers to rape and #rapemob, in irreverent and seemingly unserious ways. The argument in defense of Astroslikk is of course that his music is an artistic and exaggerated pastiche of gang culture, but I can’t say I have ever seen him confirm or deny such a thing. Personally, I choose to believe that Ruben Slikk is a feminist and advocate of all forms of social justice at heart, but I have already gotten subjective enough in this biographical essay so I’ll leave you with this song – it contains one of the slikkest (definition: the most lurid, depraved, and hilarious) Slikk verses I’ve heard to date.
[From the Album – Zuology, Zuology II coming this year]
Mr. B The Poshstronaut has been keeping busy producing hot fire and DJing for fellow Miami badass, Denzel Curry. He doesn’t tweet about his crazy adventures in Japan or rap about #rapemob and #druglaunderin –so I don’t have as much to say about him.
To close out, I present the other 1/2 of Proper Boys and 5th member of the Cokey Shores Posh Gang, Mike Dece. He was away from the public (internet) eye for a long time but now he is back. People like to speculate on where he was, but I just kind of rudely and unfairly assume he is one of those too young and too enthusiastic fans of drugs who had to step away from the scene for a second to get his head right. Anyway, he’s back now and he recently did this incredibly lo-fi song and video with Denzel Curry.
That’s all!
