Hailing from Northern California, Roving Jewel and infectious style has built an undeniable buzz in the last few years that have made him an artist-to-watch in today’s hip hop. While elevating to mainstream recognition, he delivers his best work yet as he taps a who’s who of legendary underground lyricists for his latest album, The 38th Expansion.
Produced entirely by Roving Jewel, the 14-song collection is the emerging star’s second release of the year following May’s Auditory Hallucinations. Delivering traditional West Coast production over spellbinding lyrics, Roving Jewel embarks on a must-hear journey through the gritty underground filled with a star-studded cast that fans, both old and new alike, will enjoy. The 38th includes breakout songs “The Theme,†“Coming Out The Darkness,†and “Seven Seals†with guest appearances by Tek of Smif-N-Wessun, Killah Priest and Prodigal Sunn of Sunz of Man, Substantial, 9th Prince and Kinetic 9 of Killarmy, Zion I, Casual of Hiero, The Shaaw Brothers, C.O.N-Vers, El Conductor, Andrew Lozano, and Mother’s Milk.
For Roving Jewel, The 38th Expansion is a dream album as he enlists a cast of his favorite emcees to deliver superior lyrics over his meticulously crafted production.
“Going into recording The 38th Expansion the initial idea was for it to be half instrumental and half feature legendary MCs I grew up listening to from both coasts,†Roving Jewel said about the making of the project. “I wanted it to be a nod to the golden era of hip hop but wanted to add an atmospheric element to it, something almost ethereal. I asked Prodigal first as we had already been building on some things and sent him some beats. He was with it and it grew pretty rapidly from there.â€
While assembling a cast as diverse and marquee as 38th contains could be a disaster should egos clash, Jewel’s trust, vision, and guidance prevailed.
He continued: “While there are varying styles and MCs from all over I believe recording it in such a small time frame and crafting tracks for each individual ended up working out to the album’s benefit by creating a cohesive feel and content without getting stale. Everyone I worked with are masters at their craft and it was a exciting to hear them transform the tracks and breathe life into them.â€
The latest project is the perfect origin point for newfound fans as Roving Jewel prepares to capitalize on the newfound popularity with a follow-up album in 2023. For the upcoming effort, he plans to blends more genres and make the project more personal than his previous releases.
“I’m staying busy in 2023,†the rapper shares. “I have a multi-genre project I’m doing with my brother called The audio/video department. We will be following up our most recent album … It All Felt So Real, with another album in the upcoming months. I also have a personal project I’ll be releasing entitled The Soft Glow Before Dawn. It’s an electronica-infused underground hip-hop album. I’m hoping to release it by springtime.â€
Stream the full project by Roving Jewel below, and afterward, feel free to follow the established star on social media.
© 2023, Bryson “Boom” Paul. All rights reserved.
