Artist Spotlight: Rexx Life Raj
By Keegan Singh
The hip-hop scene is extremely dense and contains so many underrated and under-appreciated artists. This series will focus on underrated hip-hop artists that deserve more recognition using my perspective as an up-and-coming artist. For whatever reason, these artists do not get the recognition they deserve, and this series is happening to change that. I hope you enjoy being introduced to these incredibly talented artists while you read.
This week’s article is about the rapper Rexx Life Raj. Hailing from Berkeley, CA, this versatile artist is more than just an ordinary rapper. He is one of the most talented artists I have come across due to his unique style and versatility as an artist. I first came across his song “Waiting For You” a few years ago and instantly fell in love with his style and vibe. His style consists of west coast beats, great vocals with various flows/melodies, and incredible lyrical wordplay.
He preaches patience and hard work as well as self-belief in his lyrics, which inspires me greatly.
(Peter A. Berry | XXL)
In addition to his ability to rap well, he also has an incredible singing voice and has started to release more R&B songs. In his career, Rexx Life Raj has released four studio albums and four EP’s. Each project highlights his ability and constant development as an artist. With every new release, he gets better and shows different sides to himself as an artist. It is typical for successful artists to stop experimenting with their music and release many songs that all sound the same. Rexx Life Raj is not one of these, along with releasing songs in his comfort zone, he likes to experiment with his flows and melodies to better himself as an artist. This can be seen throughout his career in his different projects.
The projects he has released so far are Portraits (EP) in 2014, Hidden Goats (EP) in 2014, Emoji Goats (EP) in 2017, California Poppy (EP) in 2018, Dreamland: Telegraph Ave (Album) in 2015 and the Father Figure trilogy.
His projects focus on his life and the difficulties he has had to overcome to achieve his goals. His lyrics are incredibly relatable for ambitious people who are shooting for the stars in life. He is very transparent with his vocals and doesn’t lie with anything he mentions in his songs, which is commendable and rare to see nowadays in hip-hop.
10 Songs I Recommend Listening To First Are:
Waiting For You (ft. Russ)
Bounce Back ft. G-eazy and Jay Anthony
Rose Bowl
Falling (ft. Russ)
Your Way (ft. Kehlani)
Handheld GPS
Canvas
S*** n’ Floss
Burgundy Regal
Stimulus Check
These are some of my favorites from him, but in all honesty, he doesn’t make many bad songs, so whichever track you choose, I guarantee you will fall in love with his music instantly.
Rexx Life Raj has started to gain more traction recently with his song “Bounce Back,” is featured during half-time of the NBA playoffs. He also had a piece “Moonwalk” featured on the video game NBA 2K20, and he was also recently interviewed on the popular hip-hop radio station, Sway in the Morning.
As an up and coming artist myself, I learn a lot from Raj. He preaches patience and hard work as well as self-belief in his lyrics, which inspires me greatly. He also taught me a lot about the composition of songs and how to better myself as an artist. Despite all the recent success and traction he has gained, he is still criminally underrated and deserves more recognition than he has accumulated during his six-year career. His music can be found on any streaming service, and I can guarantee that you won’t want to stop listening to him once you hear one of his songs.
You can follow Keegan on Twitter @Keegns.