Posted by Rueben Vincent, an emcee wunderkind signed to Jamla Records and Roc Nation, is highly touted as the next big thing coming out of North Carolina.
If the young man’s name sounds familiar it’s likely because he first came into the game as a 13-year-old out of Charlotte, NC and was featured on Murs & 9th Wonder’s “The Shutters” from the Brighter Daze mixtape back in 2015 and was signed to 9th Wonder’s Jamla Records the following year.
Signing to Roc Nation is a dream come true…I’m honestly still soaking it all in. 4ever grateful and thankful. Now it’s time to do what I said I set out to do in this game. Hov, you got you one. ??
— Reuben Vincent (@ReubenVincent_) December 18, 2021
Vincent has just released his first Roc Nation single, “Butterfly Doors,” a Khrysis-produced track with instrumentals from 1500 or Nothin. It is an offering that is smooth as silk with an all-encompassing bassline and horns that would make your Uncle shed a tear.
Only 21 years old, the swagger-filled and confident rhymesayer displays wordplay and cadence that are almost a throwback in the modern era of young rappers.
“I been on a new wave/ like n-ggas in the UK/ these n-ggas is soft like softer than some souffle, sweeter than some Kool Aid/also they be two-faced/so I cannot give two fucks not tomorrow or today,” he spits on the track.
Recently, the 9th Wonder mentee dropped a series of freestyles over Kendrick’s “HiiiPower,” JAY Z’s “Picasso Baby” and his own warm-up, “Andy Mionakis” as well. Vincent had this to say about how it feels to be touched by 9th Wonder and co-signed by future legend Rapsody in a 202o interview with DJBooth.net.
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“A lot of people, these days, they kinda shade co-signs,” said Rueben. “If you’re talented enough, the co-sign is just a boost to help you. It’s just somebody who’s established, a legend in the game like 9th, who is telling people: ‘Yo! This is somebody that’s gonna be great.’ That’s all a co-sign is for me: a boost to help you become who you need to be.”
His upcoming project is titled Love Is War and is his first album to be released on Jamla Records and Roc Nation.
Watch the full video to “Butterfly Doors” below.