Sometimes, the best music discoveries come from people you trust. For me, there’s a small circle of friends whose music suggestions are always on point. They don’t recommend often, but when they do, I pay attention. A while back, one of those friends, a hip hop veteran, music producer and a label executive sent me a link to RLX’s “Higher Standard” video. I meant to check it out but got caught up with other things and forgot.

A few months later, I was at one of my favorite record stores. The manager, a music head with experience from the 90s and early 2000s. Based on my record-buying history, he often recommends albums beyond just hip hop, introducing me to new genres and he never misses!

While chatting, I asked for a hip hop recommendation. Without hesitation, he handed me RLX’s DALÍ, produced by MichaelAngelo. The name rang a bell, so I figured it was time to check him out. Two trusted sources mentioning RLX had to mean something.

When I got home, I put the record on, and it didn’t take long to see why RLX was getting so much respect. From the first track, his voice and delivery had a certain weight, confident but natural. MichaelAngelo’s production on “Merci” set the perfect tone with the Drumless beat.

One of the tracks that stuck with me was “Higher Standard” I believe MichaelAngelo used the same sample as the first song “High Standard” but flipped it in a crazy way that truly embodied the Higher Standard of the track. The beat matched perfectly RLX’s lyrics and confident energy. It set the bar high for the rest of the album, and DALÍ did not disappoint.

Each song had its own vibe. Some, like “Patience“, were introspective and raw, while others, like “Cylindrical Penthouse“, had that head-nodding energy that makes you rewind just to catch a line again. The album felt cohesive but not repetitive, which isn’t easy to pull off.

The Vinyl and streaming version of the album Cylindrical Penthouse ends with an amazing looped sample, which I believe was produced by RLX (based on the album credits). It concludes with a beautiful outro saying:

“You need to go through hardship; hardship gonna teach you resilience. Struggle, that just gonna teach you patience. And failure—you need to know what failure feels like, ’cause that’s gonna give you a deep understanding of success.“

Listening to DALÍ, I kept wondering why RLX isn’t more well-known. The talent is there, and the album has that classic feel hip hop heads appreciate without feeling dated. RLX and MichaelAngelo make a strong team, creating tracks that stick with you.

If you’re looking for something real and well-crafted, don’t make the mistake I almost did; Check out DALÍ. This album hits on all levels: beat choices, production, lyrics, flow, interludes, artwork, and the vinyl. It’s amazing work for an indie artist, showing that hip hop is in good hands. Indie artists are truly pushing the genre to another level. Give it a spin and see why RLX is an artist worth keeping an eye on.

Show some love to RLX & MichaelAngelo on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/rlx.000

https://www.instagram.com/prodbymichaelangelo

Buy DALÍ on BandCamp:
https://prodbymichaelangelo.bandcamp.com/album/dal

Follow RLX on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/artist/767gqybOVhNZKHwdI8v27j

Follow MichaelAngelo on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3aYQXcymMDktzapDd73jeE