Fat Trel - SDMG [mixtape]

Fat Trel released 'SDMG (Sex Drugs Money Guns)' last night, a mixtape that has been touted since the end of last year. The self-proclaimed Fat Fool – who we featured in a piece about promising Washington DC artists earlier this year – is a beast of a rapper and is finally getting the kind of backing he deserves, with a joint deal with Rick Ross's Maybach Music Group and Roc Nation all but confirmed.

As a result this mixtape isn't as stylistically focused as his breakout efforts; there are guest spots from a wider range of rappers like Danny Brown and YG alongside his one-time mentor Wale and his crew the Sluttyboyz and the beats, whilst dominated by woozy filter-heavy productions led by JGramm Beats, DJ Mustard's minimal ratchet sound and Harry Fraud's lush sample-based exotica too. Thankfully, Trel is both powerful and dextrous enough as a rapper to handle most changes in style and pace with relative ease and is able to adapt his concise flow to strung-out narratives as well as showcasing the impressive, intricate directives he made his name with. It's a sprawling affair but SDMG is held together by Fat Trel's unflinching awareness of his vices and the force of his talent. It's available to stream below and to download here.