Cal Scruby, 'Scrubby'

The name Cal Scruby doesn’t ring any bells for the majority of hip-hop fans. But after releasing his mixtape “Scrubby” at the beginning of this monrh, that could change fast.

Becoming successful in hip-hop is hard, and making it in to the business as a white male is really hard. Unless you have the street grit of Eminem, the social relevance of Macklemore or flat out talent like Atmosphere, it is almost impossible to make a career in the genre.  

People like Marky Mark, Sammy Adams and Fox & Weber had their small moments before fading into irrelevance. However, hip-hop is a game of longevity, and only a few will stick around long enough to make a career out of it.  

An initial listen into Scruby’s mixtape and it’s easy to see he is nothing like his failed predecessors.

Most rappers “make dollars off of music without making cents (sense)” Scruby raps. The depth of his lyrics makes him standout out among the majority of wannabe rappers who have no real substance in their tracks.

Scruby experiments with many different types of sounds. Not a single track is bad, whether it’s an acappella flow in “ERS” or a high tempo verse in ”STRAIGHTLIKETHAT,” Scruby brings it.   

Listening to the album, the amount of witty and provocative lines that Scruby uses throughout his songs is overwhelming. It is such an impressive display that by the end of his last song “The Realist,” you might think you just finished listening to a professional LP by a well-established artist.  

It’s hard to compare the likeness of rappers to others rappers. Most successful musicians have tailored their sound en route to standing out in a competitive industry.

For Cal Scruby, his sound is reminiscent of J. Cole. However, he brings enough unique brilliance he really can’t be limited by comparisons. His genuine and fresh flow is a must listen for any rap enthusiast.