OCEAN - Nelson Webster
Next up in my underground artist series is an artist I am extremely excited about, OCEAN. I first learned about OCEAN while exploring Franklin Stone’s catalogue. He was featured in one of my favorite songs by Stone, EGO. This song, to me, introduces EGO as a caricature of Stone, like a second personality that is often the foil to all of his plans, the third verse, Stone’s second, boasts lyrics such as, ‘The only enemy of me is me.’ I think this is where Stone has been at his best at painting a picture, but indirectly, but this article is a focus on OCEAN, and his contribution to the song really brought some grit and helped to build the world in which EGO is a part.
My first impression of OCEAN on EGO was the deep, raspy, and in your face vocals that took up space in both ears. I only mention the space of his vocals because how his verse is mixed is almost a contradiction to the rest of the song. All of Stone’s vocals slice through the beat, residing in the dead center, but OCEAN’s vocals do the opposite. He has various different ‘voices’ competing with themselves from both sides, as if they are the voices competing for space in Stone’s head. I think this alone was genius and made his verse stand out, but he delivered bars that held up the expectation set at the beginning of the verse. He talks about his struggles as Stone did, but I feel like he attacked the concept more directly than Stone. To say the least, I was excited to hear more.
I found more, discovering 21 (which isn’t on Stoned Produce unfortunately), another OCEAN feature where he brings energy to a Franklin Stone track. Again, I was impressed and kept digging. While having no music on streaming sites, he has various projects and singles on soundcloud and youtube. It appears Stone and OCEAN have some type of relationship, because OCEAN is the only person featured more than once on a Franklin Stone song and has a remix to Tetherless, which is one of my favorite songs in Stone’s discography. Like before, OCEAN brings a distinct energy to a track, while Stone is condescending and laid back, OCEAN is aggressive with ‘militant’ bars. His Tetherless Remix is worth the listen, especially if you’re a fan of the original.
OCEAN’s latest project BUOY carries the same aggression that's in Tetherless Remix, throughout the whole mixtape. If there is one thing I can say about him is that he has flow. His flows are the most standout part of his music and can set him apart from his peers and maybe even the greats. It is not easy to convey the emotion he does at this early in someone’s career, and the only thing that can stop his rise to the top is himself. Check out his youtube and soundcloud, I promise you won’t be disappointed. Signing off, Nelson Webster.
