King Cotz: Reachin (Sneak In- Drake and 21 Savage Remix/ReProduced by DZON)
King Cotz is on roll, a couple of months ago he tackled French Montana and Drake’s track “No Shopping”. His reproduced and reworked version was called “8 Gods”, and showed plenty of courage from 21 year old unsigned rapper, songwriter and lyricist from Richmond, VA. However, King Cotz who currently attends Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA, has chosen to not stop there, and further shows his musical balls by tackling yet another Drake song. This time around it’s “Sneakin’” by Drake and 21 Savage. King Kotz renames his version, “Reachin (Sneak In- Drake and 21 Savage Remix/ReProduced by DZON)”.
King Cotz has a distinct sound and niche that may work well for him. His stylized rapping is refreshing and his subsequent records always show a progression of sorts. If it’s not in the verses, it’s in the production choices. Re-doing songs is always a rick, because you’re always going to annoy somebody who liked the original.
But it’s fair to say that in re-writing the entire lyric sheet, and having the soundscape reworked by DZON, the song retains enough of its own originality to be judged as a separate entity. It’s like going to the cinema and watching a great movie, and then when the end titles come up, you read “based on a story by…” It doesn’t really matter who wrote the original but how well the current version was executed that counts.
And King Cotz together with DZON, has done a fine job on ‘their’ song. Their planning and calculated risks prove successful. The meticulously conceived project is built following the tried-and-true King Cotz formula, strengthened by his collaborative approach and ear for crafting singles designed for catching ears.
At this point in the game, he knows a hit when he hears one, he grabs the basis of the song and then rebuilds his own earworm – and “Reachin (Sneak In- Drake and 21 Savage Remix/ReProduced by DZON)” lands him yet another bouncy production with a set of urgently delivered rhymes and a melodic chorus line.
The track was probably an absolute blast to create, with a veritable stream of lyrical thought in the studio. King Cotz utilizes full-speed-ahead intensity and big room trap, all without leaving space to breathe. Soon people will actually be looking at King Cotz to supply an album or mixtape of reworked bangers if his current line of recording continues.
With a voice becoming louder than ever in the underground, expectations will be high for him to deliver. For me, if he can put out an album of pure originals, even stronger than the singles he has been delivering, than I believe his position in the industry will be finally begin to solidify. That’s what I expect from King Cotz in the near future!
OFFICIAL LINKS: SOUNDCLOUD – TWITTER – YOUTUBE
