Los Angeles-based emcee, hip-hop artist, and songwriter Good.To.Go enhances the culture of freestyling, ciphers, and boom-bap hip-hop with his latest 7-track EP, 'YOP.'
Through his honest lyricism and high-energy performances, Good.To.Go never fails to leave his audience in awe of the natural talent and creative abilities that he gracefully offers. Good.To.Go prides himself on his understanding of hip-hop as a whole, as he's able to transmute any other genre into a hip-hop groove as he rides any beat with the utmost authority and poise.
Jumping into his recent 7-track EP, 'YOP,' the project opens with the introductory track, "Determinology." As a demonic and teacher-like voice reigns down from above while introducing us to the school of determinology, we can already feel the go-getter vibe of the track. As Good.To.Go begins riding the sweet and highly organic beat; he touches on chasing his desires while chanting the song's title on the hook and letting the listener sing along with him. We adore the string section, plucky bassline, and savory beat that Good.To.Go drenches us in, as it perfectly compliments his lyrical dexterity and a high-energy performance.
Landing on track number two, "Du(el)ality," Good.To.Go grooves into a darker and more intense approach through his swift bars and rhythmic flow. As the song rings similar to an old-school beat, it also pays many hints to modern hip-hop through its eerie piano melodies. As Good.To.Go continues pouring his powerful flow over us; he expands on how his duality has gotten him out of many mind-boggling experiences while bringing him nothing but knowledge and confidence. As rapper Devora makes his way in, he perfectly enhances the song's intensity and endurance through a similar heated flow that shakes us to the core.
Through the next tune, "Found an Ol' Beat on an Ol' Harddrive," this track takes on an incredibly different sonic atmosphere through a Japanese-style string instrument that plucks its way through our speakers alongside a high-pitched vocal that emphasizes the song's heat and power. Not to mention the crisp hi-hats and powerful sub-bass, Good.To.Go makes the experience all the more compelling through his dominant flow that pays tribute to the many sleepless nights he's spent reworking his craft while finding a sound and style that perfectly reflects his every way.
Grooving his way into the funkiest track of the EP, "Extra Bounce," the track opens with an incredible bass lick that instantly gets us locked into the song's heavy groove. With featured artist Memnoc, he offers this perfect back and forth between him and Good.To.Go's flow brings this ultimately refreshing and groovy feel to our speakers. As Good.To.Go continues grooving to the slightly nostalgic hip-hop beat; we can hear his many musical influences shine through on this track as he soaks us in many organic tones and elements that leave us tapping our feet.
Slowing it down with "Happy Existentialist," this track opens with a soothing nod to old-school hip-hop through a warm drum beat and a chilling high-pitched vocal sample that sends chills up our spine. As Good.To.Go makes his powerful and compelling vocal appearance; he begins the venture while celebrating and repeating the song's title. While moving into the verses, Good.To.Go expands on being the happiest when he's free like a bird soaring through the evening sky. As the song come to a close, we're left tapping our feet and bopping our heads to the savory beat.
Jumping into "Old Beat #2," this track takes on a heavy nod to old-school hip-hop through a nostalgic synth and a punchy drum arrangement. While Good.To.Go takes his time to pour his meaningful and conceptual bars over our speakers; he makes the experience all the more memorable as he touches on every lesson that blesses him with knowledge and experience for the future. With a heavy drum breakdown around the outro, Good.To.Go chants that there's "no such thing as a bad trip," which further emphasizes his innate thirst for knowledge and awareness.
Reaching the last track of the EP with "Rise & Grind," the song opens with a chilling sample of a sweetly nostalgic and almost 50s-sounding song where bright vocals serenade us with the dear memories he holds. As Good.To.Go and featured artist Reggie Rare make their way in; Rare takes the spotlight and opens the song with his low-toned vocals while basking in the many experiences and peaks and valleys that life has granted his way. As Good.To.Go makes his way in; he evens out the groove with his slightly higher-toned vocals that touch on the grind he surrounds himself with in order to reach his many desires.
Douse yourself in the meaningful and conceptual subject matter of Good.To.Go's latest EP, 'YOP,' is now available on all digital streaming platforms.
Welcome to BuzzMusic Good.To. Go., and congratulations on the release of your anthemic and captivating EP, 'YOP.' When did you begin writing bars and executing ideas for this project? How long was it in the making?
The beginning of YOP started in January 2020 when everything was shut down, numbers were rising and not too much else was going on. I had re-linked with my buddy, Reggie Rare (another dope emcee) about music videos and music. He was up in Palmdale so I started doing weekly drives up there to hang, freestyle, reconnect and keep sane by staying creative. We sorta had an ethos of playing a beat, then freestyle, or pick a written, and do a few takes. You would either get in those takes or move on. We were hitting maybe 4 -5 songs in 5-6 hours each session. After being dormant most of 2020, starting 2021 with all the built-up energy was cathartic and therapeutic, but most of all just pure good vibes.
What inspired you to pay tribute to freestyle, ciphers, and boom-bap hip-hop with your EP, 'YOP?'
It wasn't an intentional purpose to 'pay tribute', it was natural and that is how I've always approached 90% of my lyrics/writing. I love all types of flows and lyrical combinations and what different artists bring to a beat. Cyphers and watching how any emcee connects/flows over the same beat has always interested me. It's what grabs my attention, rhymes, bars but also the cadence, the syllable fills... most of it is an artist just being themselves and after all these sessions that were freestyle-based started connecting with some new ears, other emcees wanted to hop on. So the spirit of YOP was to keep that energy throughout, b2b tracks, the live energy, adlibs of cheering on the other emcee and respecting everyone's craft. in these 7 tracks, you def feel the comradery and joint inspirations
What was it like collaborating with the featured artists on your EP, 'YOP'? Is this your first time working with these artists, or are they old friends?
It was a blast working with everyone on this EP. again this was all happening after not seeing people in so long, so the energy to create, the collab was on another level. Emcee-wise, Reggie Rare (Rise&Grind), Devro (Du(el)ality), and Memnoc (Extra Bounce) all brought it and took the EP up to another level. Made it more dynamic and fluid. I've met all of them in the last few years through shows, working at a T-shirt shop in Venice beach, but this was the first time I got to Collab with any of them. Which in a sense, is kinda funny, in a time when it was so hard to meet with people, I felt there was a chance to connect with more people musically since there was less distraction and day-to-day so people could wand wanted to meet up. Also, from the past shows, these are three of my favorite local emcees by far. so the fact they wanted to be part of this was a huge compliment
Who produced the sonics within the EP, 'YOP'? Did you have various producers team up to execute the old-school and nostalgic flair of the EP?
All the producers on this ranged from old connections to new. Speaking of Memnoc, who was a featured artist, he also produced (3) of the beats (Determinology, ExtraBounce, HappyExtenstialist). This all happened by chance from the sessions up in Palmdale. some of the beats that I freestyled over were Memnocs and they def stood out in the mix of tracks. I sent what I did his way and he was vibing, so boom, there was half of the unplanned EP. (2) of the other beats (Du(el)ality + Rise&Grind) are from my good buddy BigChris who has always found the dopest sounds and put over drum tracks. I had those beats for a long while and would freestyle over them at shows so to finally put finalized lyrics over them was great and fulfilling. The last (2) Tracks funnily enough were from long long ago, hence the names (FoundanOl Beat and Old Beat#2) by some old friends DylanEmmett and Trillfoot from years before at live in the lab mixing session. I had them and again during the session, we were freestyling over and every beat, and what you hear was is that, so to keep that in the studio energy they work as interlude tracks but also real tracks.
Which track within your EP, 'YOP,' is your personal favorite? Which one do you gravitate towards the most and why?
Picking favorites is always hard, I like am all for different reasons, cause the memory of how they came to fruition def plays a big role and is hard to ignore when thinking of the songs. But if I'm trying to pick just from music and lyrics alone, "Du(el)ality" I think just takes the lead over a tied 2nd place of "Determinology + Rise&Grind". that beat and the hook resonates every time I play it live to a crowd. It is a great opener even though it's super personal. Devro brought it on his verse and then the last-minute special freestyle jazz guitar from Daniel Feels gave it the final finesse to bring it all together.