I very rarely listen to a hip-hop song and think, “wow, this is original.” I was actually under the impression that the vast majority of hip-hop songs were simply rehashed versions of older hits, and honestly, it just got boring after a while. But when I busted open the new Rich Hil mixtape, my excitement for hip-hop stirred itself back up.

Rich Hil is probably the most unlikely hip-hop artists. As the son of Tommy Hilfiger (Rich Hil is short for Richard Hilfiger) this rising star was certainly not raised with the hard-knock life pop culture typically assigns hip-hop superstars.  But, since stepping onto the scene Hil has come out with a series of mixtapes marked by raspy rhymes and verses that flow out of this kid like you wouldn’t believe.

These mixtapes have garnered respect from such artists as Lil Wayne, Kid Cudi and Swizz Beatz. Listening to his single, “Lady in the Hall” from his latest mixtape Limos Were Cool in the 90’s, you can see why.

His voice is a bit of a mix between singing and rapping, sort of in the vein of Lil Wayne. His lyrics are ridiculous, and I mean this in the best way possible. The stream-of-consciousness feel they give off is almost soothing but given a deeper listen the lyrics prove to be effective and thought provoking. This is something, I believe, to be commended in a world where the hip-hop hit of the day is almost certainly about how much money they have in their pocket or how they could make your “bed rock.”

Needless to say, this kid is something special. Listen for yourself in the free listen provided HERE, or wait for his debut full-length which is set to be released later this spring on Limo Life Records. This album will feature “Trippy,” a pretty awesome collaboration with Kid Cudi that is available for listening right now on Hil’s Myspace.

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