In January, golden tickets circulated through the endless town of the internet, inviting artists and media figures to convene in Atlanta with Dreamville Records for recording sessions. These were for Revenge of the Dreamers III, a forthcoming project announced by labelhead J. Cole, who, since then, has been pretty quiet about when it would come out or what it would sound like. All we knew previously was what social media showed us: Over 100 artists, from 6lack to Swizz Beatz, pulled up and helped contribute to the project, whether in the form of music or just by contributing to the creative atmosphere. I say all that to say that we finally have the first two songs from these sessions: “Down Bad” and “Got Me,” which both have enough collaborators to save them for another graf.
The first is “Down Bad” a shrill posse cut that twirls faster than the Tasmanian Devil in the Flash’s suit. J. Cole, Young Nudy, J.I.D, Bas, and Earthgang quickly drop bars and dip in this group effort that’s not even three minutes long. Its quickness helps to keep its precision to a high point, causing all of the aforementioned artists not to waste words or breath. It helps that it sounds like a skin being twisted and pinched, drawing attention away from its painful instrumentation to focus on these emcees surgically implanting themselves on the beat. The operation is a success.
The second of the two numbers is “Got Me” that consists of Ari Lennox, Omen, Ty Dolla $ign, and Dreezy. This romantic ode to a partner is a confirmation of companionship, that no one will be able to be there like they can, physically and mentally. Ari and Ty are the crooners of this posse cut while Omen and Dreezy bring the heft of a rapper’s edge. It balances out to a soothing yet rugged tune to light candles to before a dim dinner or to play at half volume while riding along the countryside at night with a partner.
These two previews of the album are surely just the tip of the iceberg. When J. Cole tweeted that the two songs were out last night, he ended the message with five exciting words: “Whole Album on the way.”
Listen to Dreamville’s two massive posse cuts, “Down Bad” and “Got Me,” up above.
