EXCLUSIVE: Debut Single off Slaine's “The Boston Project” - “Loyalty” feat. Kali & Twice Thou

There are countless reasons that Slaine has crushed the Boston rap game like a Budweiser can. For one, he tells the sort of bleak Boston tales that weren't always illustrated in hip-hop – stories about spots like Southie and Roslindale, which reek of their own unique stench. As important, though, is that Slaine hasn't alienated the rest of Hub hip-hop in the process – whether that means cats from Roxbury and Dorchester, or artists from outside of the immediate city like Termanology in Lawrence, or NBS and Lou Armstrong in Cambridge.

In a rap scene that's notoriously known as a crab bucket, Slaine has managed to bat away the bastards without jeopardizing his overall standing. He's also done world tours and starred in three Hollywood films without getting branded as a sellout. His upcoming album, The Boston Project (Suburban Noize / Commonwealth), is a testimony to that stature, with Slaine tapping the region's best and baddest to pull up barstools and take shots with him (see: track list below). From tough startups like Moroney to longtime power players like Smoke Bulga, the entire MBTA map gets covered.

As for the single at hand . . . Slaine cracks open “Loyalty” with some trademark tales of cigarette-burned sofas and despair. Chasing him, Showoff Records-affiliate Kali floors the accelerator with an intoxicating two-Timberland stomp sure to fail any breathalyzer. Then comes Bean rap stalwart Twice Thou to smack the tail end with a fierce verse and an Annie Dookhan drug lab reference. In his turn, Slaine rhymes, “Every backwards mind that I turned is aligned with me.” But as he tells the Phoenix, his guests on The Boston Project have also influenced him.

“As far as the features on this track, Kali is one of the best rappers in Mass of his generation. I have worked with him before on my State of Grace mixtape with Statik Selektah. Twice Thou – a/k/a E-Devious from The Almighty RSO and Made Men – is just one of the OG rappers in Boston period. He is one of the people responsible for getting me interested in hip-hop that came out of my city, and when you put all that together, this joint just embodies what this album is all about.”

Slaine continues: “I for whatever reason have always like to listen to hip hop while I drive. It's probably why I get stopped for speeding so much. When I'm making an album, I always drive around listening to the demo versions of songs to see if they work, and when I get the master I especially I have to give it the car test. “Loyalty” is a perfect example of a dope song to throw in the CD player when you start the engine, and turn the volume all the way up . . .”

The Boston Project drops April 2013

1. Evolution Of The Kid
2. Nothin' But Business (Feat. BR & V Knuckles)
3. Bloodthirsty (Feat. 357 & Phinelia)
4. Loyalty (Feat. Kali & Twice Thou)
5. Buildin' With Edo (Feat. Edo G)
6. Polaroid Picture (Feat. J The S, Dutch Rebelle & Cyrus Deshield)
7. Cocaine & Whiskey (Feat. Amadeus the Stampede & Moroney)
8. Zombie Land (Feat. Rite Hook)
9. Bible Pages (Feat. Big Kurt, Shizz Vicious, Lateb, Esoteric & Moroney)
10. Rats Maze (Feat. Newz and Lecks Get It On)
11. Coke Money Jones (Feat. Easy Money & Chilla Jones)
12. Bad Guy (Feat. Millyz & Smoke Bulga)
13. Something To Believe In (Feat. Lou Armstrong, Patrick Starr, Moroney & Blanco)
14. Back Where I'm From (Feat. Piff & Singapore)
15. The Fuckery Hotel ( Feat. Kali & Reks)
16. Faster Than Time (Feat. Dre Robinson & DL)
17. Hero (Feat. Jaysaun & Checkmark)