Never being afraid to bring other artists onto a song or project, CT-based producer Dougie has essentially handed us an entire production tape dedicated to that very idea: collaboration. Linking with several other musicians and rappers from Connecticut to Boston, his debut project Dougieworld is full of different sounds and moods. Using the people around him to capture the exact mood that he was looking for with each beat, his has given us a great project to live in.
Starting with a Doug E Fresh quote talking about how hip-hop is comparable to rock-and-roll in the way that it wasn’t entirely embraced and welcomed by the general population during it’s beginnings as a genre. Slowly however, the people came around to the music and now we are seeing the same thing with hip-hop. After the crew-style opening song 508 featuring a handful of rappers from the CT area, including Luke Bar$, Jiles, Saintlyor, Lord Felix & Ricky Felix, the title track slaps listeners in the face with an incredible production and a catchy hook.
Starfox provides a spacey mood to the project and serves as a much welcomed interlude between tracks. With the melodic instrumental and heavy bass kicks, the quiet Three Six Mafia verse hits the ear perfectly. Reaper (feat Fame), Wild (feat Mo Woods), and P.F.O.M. (feat $e7n) are three back-to-back vibes. Almost coming together cinematically, the placement directly after the interlude track was perfect.
On the track King of Pop give a nod to Michael Jackson in the chorus and with the Jacksonesque ad-libs. Listing fellow rappers from New England $jdub and $e7n, the trio exchange bars over the calming instrumental. On the track Rollin’ (feat Vzathegreat) Dougie touches on his insecurities about not exactly fitting in with other black kids in his hometown. Citing the way he speaks and the fact that his parents were able to provide a home for him, he felt different and sort of as an outcast.
Sliding into one of the high points on the album, Sick Sad Honey (feat. Michelene Dupuis), the vocals on this track are incredible. Dupuis’s voice flows all around the beat and beautifully compliments the project as a whole. Adding a feminine touch to the soft, soothing beat and melody provided by Dougie, the project rolls off into a beautiful tangent with the next few tracks.
Promise (feat. Kolton Harris) is a bright and colorful track that puts Dougie’s versatility on full display. Taking a step back from his hip-hop influences, he brings a very different approach to the making of this beat.
“The inspiration came from Kaytranada and I wanted to do something that was unique and out of the box.”
Flowing perfectly into the equally melodic and almost euphoric track Weekend (feat. Tyler Gaccione), the album continues to impress. Ending on a wave with the last track before the Outro, he recruits Vzathegreat and Fame for the cut Lover’s Lost.
The production on this thing is executed incredibly. Rarely, if ever, did I find myself bored with any of the instrumentals or beats on this project. Successfully putting together a cohesive tape, as a producer, can be very difficult but it would seem that Dougie would disagree because Dougieworld is truly a great listen. Since there are so many features on this project, each song feels fresh and new as he enlists different musicians for just about every track, with a few double features here and there.
Overall, Dougie has presented us with a tape that puts his skills as a producer on full display. Recruiting people from his area to help him complete the project, you can hear the great chemistry between himself and everyone he brought on board to make this project possible. As he will continue to make newer and better music going forward, I am very excited to see where his production will take him in the industry. Be sure to check out his newest project Dougieworld and stay tuned for new music coming soon!
