Nashville’s creative scene has been a stirring speaking point of our 2019. A city painted bright with endless expanses of artistic reach, it serves as a crossroads for the timeless relationship between art throughout history and sociocultural movements through the same. And standing in the heart of the south, Nashville’s creative culture – rooted in the culture of statement – is powerful.

 

‘Jazz was the light! This Saxophone sh** saved my life.’

 

In a statement of his own, Nashville’s AyyWillé explains his affinity for brass. And be it a rare path for many to pursue in music, it’s even rarer as musical roots for an eventual rapper. But, that’s part of what makes AyyWillé so special. 

 

The Code is his latest single and is a layered, bold coalescence of two lanes that to this day – when brought together right – are classic. Think of the roots of soul, funk, and hip-hop and think jazz. Think of the low-fidelity jazz tapes that acted as foundation for grass-roots East Coast rap. Listen to AyyWillé’s The Code and hear the confluence of generations of jazz and hip-hop in mutual spirit.

 

And then listen deeper. Beyond the silky song of the saxophone and its weaving relationship with AyyWillé’s meditative flow, another progression pushes forward. Lyrically, the Music City transcendentalist is refined for an artist with such a limited canon to this point. A lot of it seems to be that he has a lot to say. He speaks on his saxophone; on his struggles as an up-and-coming musician; and on so much more that if The Code has any downfall, it’s that it has to be listened to a handful of times just to allow the landscape of AyyWillé’s provocative wordplay to really be painted. 

 

But we’re not complaining. Between the sax, AyyWilllé’s addicting cadence, his penmanship, and his uniquely low register, The Code is worth each new listen it gets.