“The title of the project is derived from 24/7, because we go the extra mile, and we put our all and more into our music.”
North London’s Brandz and South London’s Zion couldn’t have formed a more flawless collaboration, on their recent mixtape 25/8, and it is no wonder that their new body of work has already reached No.2 on the iTunes Hip-Hop/Rap Album Chart. Both their vocal tones compliment each other perfectly……Brandz’s is deep and sensual, whilst Zion’s is crisp and
angelic, showcased during the ‘Intro’ track to 25/8 where the two perform spot-on harmonies and deliver ear-pleasing, R&B Pop music production, opening the mixtape nicely.
‘Dangerous’ musically explores Brandz & Zion’s sexual side, whilst they cleverly reference the shallowness of fame and “celebrity” through honest lyrics such as “I know she’s only with me for the status” and, in a contradictory way, express just how much they wish to worship the woman of their dreams with materialism and VIP perks, over one of the most infectious hooks to drop onto the Urban scene in a very long time. It has HIT written all over it, and that beautifully-performed, reverb-effected Piano melody is nostalgically reminiscent of the critically acclaimed works of Moby, specifically the 1999 album ‘Play.’
‘Time’ continues their “sexual” flow with a Trap beat and Sitar-sounding synth performing a catchy melody, over experimental R&B production, proving that the duo is, not just the new princes of mainstream urban music, but that they are also not afraid to delve into alternative music territory. ‘Time’ is Neon’s favourite track from 25/8, whilst ‘Top’ is a
“f*ck-you” to all the people who didn’t believe that Brandz & Zion could make it to the “top.”
“Our work ethic and grind is a lifestyle, that’s what this mixtape captures, and we think the track that perfectly embodies this is ‘Top’, which is all about us sharing our reality, where we’ve come from, our struggle to get to this point, and somewhat what we do music for, but there are also tracks like ‘Diamonds’ which appreciates our women of today. All in all, the whole project is filled with ‘feel-good’ and motivational music, from cuffing season R&B anthems, and exciting high energy trap records, to heavy hitting hip hop hits, and catchy afrobashment tunes – it has everything”.
‘Blessings’ is a reminder of when Santana teamed up with R&B duo The Product G&B on 1999 hit single ‘Maria Maria,’ making ‘Blessings’ a sexy, stunning Latin Pop song, where we find Brandz & Zion exposing just how strong their vocal capability is when reaching their higher registers, as well as embracing Salsa on a dancefloor-filler of a track.
‘Diamonds’ plays on the duo’s darker side, revealing their “inner-The Weeknd,” using deep bass lines, delay and reverb effects on their vocal performances, alongside a trippy, piano chord structure, all together delivering an edgier production in comparison to how their mixtape kicked off. And……let’s not forget a masterfully performed Rap section by Brandz.
Lyrics such as “baby what’s your number, can you type it and I just wanna take you to an island” will soon enough send you into a sensual trance via their laid-back singing, especially when you hear the words “I think I’m in love, or is it lust now?”
25/8 comes to a close with ‘Full Effect,’ the mixtape’s Outro track, an R&B Pop song with a similar groove and tempo to Jordan Sparks’ hit single ‘Tattoo.’ However, the chord structure is not typical, predictable, or traditional of your usual pop song, and instead, it delves, yet again, into more Alternative urban music territories, with a hint of Slow Jam and old school hip-hop music production via its’ use of keyboard sounds.
‘Full-Effect’ is an, overall, seductive trip, with the use of lyrics such as “I just wanna’ take you to my room, undress you, baby, you make me crazy.”
It is fair to state that Brandz & Zion are both ridiculously talented artists and we can’t wait to hear more new music from the duo during 2020.