EYRST labelmates ePP and Maze KoromaLast Thursday, Portland emcee ePP dropped a new song in response to ongoing police brutality. "We have questions, we want answers," he wrote on Facebook. The track, "SⒶMMICH," is taken from a crooked cop's point of view—listen below.
Then over the weekend, producer Calvin Valentine rolled through town for a session with fellow EYRST labelmate Maze Koroma. "After we had finished working, I started playing beats for him and ePP," Valentine says. "The beat was originally called 'Stray Bullet'" and "that one clicked for them," he says, taking "the direction of the songwriting" down that path.
"Given recent events, we both had a lot on our minds so the concept kind of came together naturally. I think we both knew what time it was," Maze Koroma says.
While ePP adds: "The topic was in the title, so it was easy to agree on a concept. The chemistry we have is definitely shown in the music. My verse and hook for the song were already stored in my mind due to the current events that are taking place in our country. It's been hard for me to think about anything else. People are mentally drained and hurt, so we wanted to share how a lot of us are feeling right now."
