Talibando’s Interpersonal Journeys on ‘ART OF WAR’
The album is now streaming on music platforms.
Photography by Esdras Thelusma
He’s unapologetically Detroit. You may know him from his unequivocal trademark, ES7M (Eastside 7 Mile); Talibando re-emerges from the city’s underground music scene to a trailblazing force in Detroit and beyond. Returning with his new album ART OF WAR, Talibando reinstates his grind-heavy sound with dynamic R&B samples and a new wave sound for his first project of 2024.
Like much Detroit rap, ART OF WAR delves into the origins of Detroit rap with low, brooding piano chords, heavy bass, effortless flows, swift beats, street tale lyrics, and acclaimed producers, like Bass Kids, DDotFreezing, Dmac, Michigan Meech, Yung Icey, and Talibando dabbling into music engineering himself. However, the 13-song album goes beyond the bounds of the Motor City.
Following his singles “Last of a Dying Breed” and “W.D.W.,” Talibando’s highly-anticipated project interweaves gritty concepts. It blends soothing ‘90s R&B background vocals and cadences, creating a pioneering sound that experimentally (and successfully) marries the topics of hardships, relationships, achievements, and more with Detroit sound.
Although much of the album embodies Talibando’s personal journeys, ART OF WAR represents self-reflection unique to each listener. It aims to help listeners examine themselves internally while understanding how they need to evolve externally. Features including Veeze, Payroll Giovanni, Trigga500K, Talibando, and his collaborators only further prove that there really is art to every war.
“The difference between this project and previous ones is that I tried to make more songs for women,” Talibando says. “Songs like ‘Catch a Vibe’ really touch my female fan base.”
Not only is Talibando catering to a broader range of listeners, but he’s also continuously learning new ways to structure songs through hook and bridge placements and cohesion.
“If you’ve been a fan since the beginning and heard from then to now, I think you could understand what’s going on,” he says. “If not, you could go back and listen to catch on.”
Despite accumulating millions of streams, Talibando says he’s nowhere near where he wants to be in his career. Detroit has shaped his sound, personality, and mindset, and he’s mostly collaborated with Detroit artists solely. He wants to combine his sound with other genres, such as Pop, R&B, and Rock.
“I have a unique story,” Talibando says. “Many people can write a script, movie, or fairytale to come up with lyrics. I just tell my story, and I tell a really unique one. I want to be the last of the dying breed of those artists we’re losing who only rap about street hustle. I want to hold it down.”
Talibando has been into music with his Detroit music family for over ten years, but he knows he’s still as fresh as an artist who started making music a year ago. He’s yet to reach his full potential, but ART OF WAR exists to continue that evolution.
“I’m looking forward to growth,” he says. “I’m going to put my head down, work hard, and one day, it will all pay off.”
