Tigrayan-DMV rapper, Sideshow, sits closely next to the listener and shines a small flashlight over his dimly-lit past on his most recent project F.U.N. T.O.Y. I was on the New York subway heading uptown when I was reminded by the 10k Global Instagram that F.U.N. T.O.Y. dropped the night before. Immediately, I paused what I was listening to, and rushed to Spotify to listen. The album opener "SANG & OR" begins with a 45-second skit of an unknown man explaining how “young people are not gonna make it into heaven…there’s too much pleasure down here”. The voice is then interrupted by a cheerful synth and french rapper Jwles who wastes no time floating over a nostalgic, playful melody with an energetic bassline from the french producer Blasé. The abrupt switch and the french rapping not only caught me off guard, but it was so exhilarating that it caused morning commuters to look at me with a concerned face. Honestly, I was about halfway through the Jwles verse when I glanced at my phone to confirm I was listening to the correct album. It’s not uncommon for an artist to introduce an album with a skit, but also giving the first verse to someone rapping in a completely different language, style, and tone than what I considered a traditional Sideshow record was a curveball that sent my prior expectations out the window.
An oil portrait of Sideshow with hand tattoos spelling “The Biggest T” (he has an additional 3 fingers on his hand to make room) glanced back at me, confirming that this is the correct album. I let out a smirk no sooner than Sideshow introduced himself on the project with the opening lines,
“Really I’m one of them niggas, man of my people, I’m a man of my section/I know the streets don’t love nobody, I gotta respect it/I know that bitch loving on everybody, I ain’t even suspicious/Trap shit, rap shit, don’t matter T the only difference”.
Immediately, I was hooked.
Sideshow proceeds to detail what I understand is a conflicting and draining cycle that he is continuing to learn more about. He opens up about his grievances and regrets, reflects on his past, continues to maintain his confidence while diagnosing which areas of his life have room for growth, and recognizing how much systematic oppression stunted his potential. Maximizing his unique perspective, and including the unexpected 3rd party opinion, Sideshow reviews the path that led him to where he is now on F.U.N. T.O.Y.
Sideshow cherishes every line, bar, and word throughout the project despite rarely going back in for a second verse. The album has a total runtime of 31 minutes across 17 songs, (a handful of them being skits) and a guest verse from El Cousteau towards the end that juxtaposes Jwles’ verse on the intro. This project also includes a variety of instrumentals from his common collaborator Alexander Spit, and adds Popstar Benny, Tony Seltzer, and AYOCHILLMANNN to the gumbo of all-star producers on F.U.N. T.O.Y. The way that Sideshow uniquely sandwiches a piercing bar of mourning or the scary process of self-reflection, next to a bar detailing his natural hustle for reaching the highest peak, supported by a skilled variety of producers is what made this brief listen feel constantly entertaining. Sideshow’s approach to not always being the main voice on the project allowed him to take a backseat and let the skit continue to explain what he might still be processing himself, or further elaborate on a theme that helps guide the listener through the album's arc. Still, Sideshow rapping brief but consistently compelling verses at a time is always captivating, and it not only increases the value of his perspective, but also refocuses the listener's attention. An album as short as this one is hard to execute in this style, but Sideshow's distinctiveness transforms it into a small dessert that you can’t stop reordering.
