Smoke DZA & Flying Lotus – “Drug Trade 2” (Feat. Black Thought & Benny The Butcher)
Back in September, Harlem underground rap veteran Smoke DZA teamed up with the always-unpredictable production mastermind Flying Lotus to release the collaborative EP Flying Objects. Flying Lotus might be rooted in rap, but he doesn’t make straight-up hip-hop beats too often these days. It was a blast to hear him lock into a kind of psychedelic boom-bap, and it resulted in one of my favorite EPs of the year.
The best track on Flying Objects was probably “Drug Trade,” which featured an absolutely on-fire verse from legendary Roots crew veteran Black Thought, who remains a shining example of barred-out grown-man rap music. Today, we get a new version of “Drug Trade.” The Flying Lotus beat is unchanged, and so are the Smoke DZA and Black Thought verses. But now we also get another verse, and it’s from a guy who loves talking about the drug trade. Benny The Butcher, a past DZA collaborator, pops up to claim that he’ll be the first to put a Starbucks in the trap. Check it out below.
“Drug Trade 2” is out now on Smoker’s Club.