[Album Review] Teddy Oso - Sky Cafe

Arizona’s 20 year old rapper Teddy Oso recently dropped his first official album called Sky Cafe. The album has a wavy 80’s vibe. “It’s the kind of tape you put on and cruise around to” says former Floral Posse (Oso’s old band) member Anime Jay. Sky Cafe spins off with - She Hates Me. If you’re familiar with the underground movement in Arizona, the voice on this track is quite recognizable. It’s non other than Bigg Al from The Legal Trap. The mood for the rest of the tape is set in the introduction- when that 80’s feel hits, there is nothing but groovy beats following. The opening is reminiscent of Chris Brown's track, Kiss Kiss, that dropped back in 09. Bigg Al kicks off the tape similar to how T-pain kicks off Kiss Kiss. Not sure if this was the intent but when these two thoughts linked I thought it was a mighty clever idea.

The second track on Sky Cafe is called Expresso. As soon as the beat hits the eardrum you can’t help but bob your head around. Then bam, the tempo switches up. Now you’re bobbing your head more enthusiastically and throwing in some hand movements. No doubt a wavy track. It’s noticeable that Teddy reps Arizona fully. He mentions The Copper State in a few of the songs. Some of the lines are:

“Let’s enjoy this Arizona weather with some coffee company”

“We up in Phoenix Arizona with this one”

“...be the greatest up in Az..”

That’s My Baby is the most popular track on Sky Cafe according to iTunes statistics. It’s no surprise this song would be a hit. It’s catchy and best of all you can dedicate it to your “honey dip”. In the Pocket has a sick electric guitar sample and then it transitions to a smooth jazz tune. It was a great collaboration with Slator Bacc considering that Slator is known for his jazzy tempos to his raps. Lit Fair sounds like a celebration song but who wouldn’t be celebrating their first ever album drop. When it comes to the next track, Action Figures, I had to pause and reverse the beginning to really appreciate how Teddy goes in on the beat. And he starts with powerful lyrics. This is by far the most serious track on the album. He mentions sensitive, real world problems. A former Floral Posse member features in this song - Wilby the Great. Another great collaboration, Wilby adds such an ill flow to the song. I was impressed with this song, the diversity that is included in Sky Cafe is remarkable.

Paint the Town is poppin. According to iTune charts it’s the second most popular song on the album and it also falls under my personal favorite. The message that is portrayed in this track is very relevant to today’s time. It illustrates how dependent people are towards social media. The issues it hits on is how some people can’t even be themselves comfortably in person because they’re so use to expressing themselves through a screen. In keeping with the paint metaphor, Teddy Oso raps “everybody’s an artist you just gotta start painting”, which is indeed facts. Might sound silly but if you do give yourself time to get to know Yourself you might discover that you hold some artistic abilities. Everybody holds them in one form or another.

Teddy has the ability to create many different tones within his music. His diversity is again on display throughout this album but on tracks 9 and 10, it is evident. He can be innocent with his lyrics or he can spice it up and be seductive with it like on track 9- Carmel Seduction. The next song that plays is a feel good track. “Today” spreads mad amounts of positivity. The song is short but the message is clear: every day is a new day and you can decide to spend it in whatever way possible.

Citrus Vol. II is probably the most aggressive track on Sky Cafe, yet it still holds a positive meaning. It is great because you can compare Citrus Vol. I, which was released about two year ago, and Citrus Vol. II to see how much Teddy has grown as an artist. The inner Samurai in Teddy has gained a huge amount of confidence. This is vital in the rap game. “If you know you’re great then never be afraid to be great”, Teddy raps on Citrus II. As an artist I feel like the biggest challenge is having confidence in your ability and in your work. This is a logical fear/challenge considering that you're putting yourself out there for anyone to judge. Artists put their heart and souls into their music and people may not even vibe to it. That’s scary. Teddy has an understanding of this and he's learned to “love life and stay true”. What I get from this is, as along as you love what you do and stay true to yourself there is always going to be people who are “really messing with [you]”.

The work that Teddy Oso put into Sky Cafe shines. The album is compacted with all sorts of moods and messages. You have your love songs, your lit song, and you even have songs that make you think. It’s a mood changer, meaning- play it when you need to change the color of your mood ring to good.