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On No Cosign Just Cocaine 4, Detroit native Ty Farris continues to flex his lyrical muscles while creating his most well rounded project to date.
Very much a member of the hard hitting, underground boom-bap revival, Farris is one of the meanest, most formidable MC’s out. A member of the Detroit hiphop community for nearly two decades now, Farris made a name for himself as a battle rapper under the name T-Flames. He has had a bit of a career renaissance in recent years with projects such as Wired Different (a collaboration with producer Bozack Morris), Dark Nights & D-Fitted’s, and his of course his opus, the No Cosign series. Sounding at home amidst the grimy underground scene (akin to Rome Streetz, Trust Gang, and fellow Detroit native Boldy James), he comes at the listener with direct flows and hard hitting wordplay documenting life on the streets.
No Cosign Just Cocaine 4‘s greatest strength is its diversity; It sports an all-star lineup of features and producers (relative to the scene), and balances introspection with braggadocio. The album opens with “Slow Down”, an aggressive tone setter full of quotables (“You n—– been fell off way before the crate challenge”). The beat, courtesy of frequent collaborator Bozack Morris, is strong and eerie with its droning, distorted synth. “You Should Be Ashamed” is perhaps the albums greatest highlight. Farris’ first collaboration with legendary Detroit producer Black Milk (hopefully with more to come), brings cold, high-pitched percussion as Ty puts the game on notice. Solid posse cuts featuring Big Twins and more precede a rare Big Ghost LTD placement.
On the Spanish Ran produced “Suffer” (be sure to check out our Spanish Ran 2021 Recap Playlist!) and “Anonymous Millionaire”, Farris gets more introspective over some hauntingly beautiful vocal loops and more subdued beats. Lamenting the struggles of life in the Detroit hood and vowing to remain true to himself, he shows some real versatility across this project. In fact, “Anonymous Millionaire” is a strong testament to his overall message with these albums: No matter what happens, he knows what he is capable of and has done to get here in life, so fuck the industry and anyone hating. The bars speak for themselves. Whether it be a barrage of wordplay, dark imagery of the drug game, or something from the heart, Farris is always formidable with the pen.
The album closes on a high note with assists from the talented Elzhi, Nicholas Craven, and Apollo Brown. “For All Y’all” is a standout Apollo beat and a bit of a departure from his typical soul loops. Farris leaves us with plenty to consider on the outro as he explains both the catharsis of sharing his struggles with us and gratitude for his fanbase.
If there is one complaint to be had, it’s that his flow remains pretty consistent across the album; While it is strong and brings a lot of shine to his bars, it would be more engaging to get a change of pace (maybe even a double time or triplet banger someday). That being said, No Cosign Just Cocaine 4 is possibly Ty Farris’ best work to date, and that is high praise given his consistent quality and growth. Finally taking his lyrical prowess and applying it to a more complete, varied project, he only leaves us wanting more.
Listen to No Cosign Just Cocaine 4 here: