Mavi - “Sense”

SXSW 2020 - OEB Score: 7; Popularity Index: 6

Pairs Well With…Kemba, A Tribe Called Quest, IDK

Mavi’s stream-of-consciousness flow gives his music a conversational tone, lyrically dense and complexly metered rhymes that still have emotional depth as his songs subtly build with serious intention. Mavi’s 2019 debut Let the Sun Talk is built on classic, jazz-infused beats, but there are psychedelic layers to trip out the record beyond steady, lounge-ready raps. The Charlotte-based rapper leans more classic NYC than Southern rap influences, but there are some woozier moments in Mavi’s music (“Love, of Money”, “Sense”), that more reflect trap-south soundscapes than the sharpened edges of music up north. (Kevin McStravick)