It’s hard being authentic nowadays. Bombarded with propaganda on how to look, what to like, and what to think, to stay true to your own beliefs and interests is harder than it should really be. And in the hip hop scene, being authentic is more important than anything else.

There are the old school heads, who believe that anything authentic had to have happened before 50 Cent’s 2003 album Get Rich or Die Tryin’ – and even that’s pushing it – and then there are the new school kids rapping Lil’ Yachty, Lil’ Uzi Vert, and all the Lil’s under the sun.

Then there’s Digby, walking the line between them, grounded in the classic hip hop tropes and thematics, but always learning and keeping up with the always evolving hip hop scene.

Neither old school nor new school, you can just call him true school. And his debut solo album, Two Sides to Everything, shows his lyrical ability crossing eras and incorporating everything that hip hop is and was.

“I named this record Two Sides To Everything because I wanted to show that I can be very versatile when creating music, but also to keep my signature style. On this record I got club songs, deep tracks, witty, funny lines – but most of all, high calibre lyricism,” says Digby. “I will always be a fan and student of the art of hip-hop, so having top notch lyrics is always going to be a must for every release I put out.”

Digby’s incessant focus on lyricism shows his roots in 1990s’ hip hop – your voice, your beats, and your style were all important. But, if you couldn’t spit a hot verse, you weren’t getting anywhere. A rapper’s ability to be witty in rhyme, funny in his flow, while talking about relevant subjects in a relatable way, was what a burgeoning rapper needed to be heard.

But Digby hasn’t been doing this for a minute now. I myself first heard Digby not through his hip hop work under the Chapter Zero moniker, but about a decade ago with his hybrid-metal band Club Murder, where he also raps, but over breakdowns and detuned guitar riffs instead of some boom-bap beats.

Having to be versatile with his lyrics over the years has honed his skills, skills he is ready to show on Two Sides to Everything.

“I have been involved with multiple outfits over the years, doing features with established rappers overseas, with over a decade involved in music. Due to other obligations I didn’t have time to really release a whole solo record... it wasn’t easy being active in Club Murder, going to practice twice a week and to still find time to create a solo record, but hey, I managed,” says Digby.

His tracks have made waves abroad, and brought him to the attention of some of the top names in the production game, talent he has harnessed for his album.

His debut solo album shows his lyrical ability crossing eras and incorporating everything that hip-hop is and was

“I’ve got two tracks produced by top Boston-based producer C-Lance, who has worked with huge names in hip hop like Tech N9ne, Vinnie Paz and more,” he says. “I’ve got an engineer on there as well who has produced tracks for the likes of Diabolic and more. As for Malta, I have some stuff with Havana 808 resident DJ Siconix, with FDM crew producer Depth, with David Depasquale from SpineSplitter Studios, and talented local producer Microlith who is starting to make a good name for himself overseas.”

The album itself is strong, coherent piece of work, showing where hip hop is in 2016, which elements of so many different types of the genre, from beats to vocal delivery to lyrical inspiration. From the modern trap-inspired beats of Siconix on Open Spot, the album’s lead single, to the classic intellectualism of Grammatics, Digby’s reached into his inner psyche on this album and laid it bare for the world.

“It’s everyone’s personality, let’s be real,” laughs Digby in response to a question about the opening track. “We can all be sometimes, but the whole point behind this track is that no matter the good or the bad you will do in your life, you will always be judged by people, so might as well just say, ‘yeah, I can be exactly like the title of the opening track on the album, and I couldn’t care less about what others think’, so to speak,” he winks.

His collaboration with the young up and coming CJ, from the Soul Movement crew, is a nice blend of old and new school – and the track’s title, True School, seems to make fun of the hip hop world’s sometimes distorted sense of authenticity.

“CJ is a beast, I’ve known the kid for a while now, and I think he is going places. The track came about when I heard a beat from Depth with which I fell in love, so I decided to speak to CJ to hop on the beat, so we could create a mix of new school and old school vibes in one track, hence the name, point being is that it doesn’t matter from which era of hip-hop you are, as long as you keep it true,” he explains clearly.

Two Sides to Everything also features one of the most touching and emotional pieces of art I’ve seen all year – a track, in Maltese no less, featuring the mother of a close friend of Digby’s who committed suicide last year. On Diska Għalik, we see Digby switch back to his mother tongue of Maltese for the track – something he rarely does – over a melancholic beat, with the mother singing the chorus in an incredibly haunting and poignant operatic voice

“I lost a good friend last year and I felt I had to release a track dedicated to him and to everyone who has suffered from depression. The guest on the track is very special, she is my late friend’s mum who happens to be a great singer. We’re planning on shooting a video for it, so look out for a music video coming out soon for Diska Għalik.”

With an album from the heart, Digby once agains shows the reality of living in Malta and trying to get by, being true to yourself and dealing with the challenges that life throws you via music, and especially lyrics. With choice lines like Lost sight of the present/my future is too bright and So ahead of my time/the hands on the clock stop and clap, Two Sides to Everything could be Malta’s hottest album in 2016.

But right now, Digby is just focused on the album launch, where he will be unveiling the album for the first time and performing the tracks for the first time live as well.

“On September 30 I’ll be doing a release party for my album at the Warehouse in Żurrieq, featuring Shyli Cassar, CJ Cordina and Kapitlu Tlettax. We’ve got an after party by top local DJs Carl Lautier and Microlith, and my man Supre will be playing music all night, keeping the vibe in check,” says Digby.

If you are a fan of real hip hop in 2016, make sure you don’t miss this.

Two Sides to Everything launches with a performance and party on Friday at The Warehouse in Żurrieq.

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