The lowercase mc

I've been checking for shai linne (he prefers it spelled without caps) since hearing about his church, Epiphany Fellowship. He's into rough, underground hip hop and proclaiming Christ with his content laden, meaty raps. I've avoided 'Christian' rap for a while now because often it isn't really saying much other than namedropping Jesus here and there. It sounds like shai linne understands how I felt. He and a few others are part of Lamp Mode Recordings, an independent label with a unique outlook. Below is a video about his new album (click here if you wanna hear a rapper give love to John Stott's The Cross of Christ):

Some of his music sounds a little 'off'. This isn't surprising, he's trying to do something pretty new and pretty bold. There are songs that totally hit the mark, there are others that sound like he's sacrificing flow for lyrics. I reckon that'll improve as he goes on.



His lyrics are loaded. You'll always hear underground rappers talk about dropping science and how commercial rappers' lyrics are weak but shai makes all of them sound like they're rapping from a learn-to-read book. Proof of this is in the listening guide that accompanies his first album (they're making one for his new album too), designed to help you get the most out of each song. Check out the Grassroots sampler from Lamp Mode if you wanna hear more.