Category: Featured

Picking up where he left off with #Maxo187, Maxo Kream returns with equal grit on the The Persona Tape. Featuring appearances from fellow Houston rapper Paul Wall and Atlanta rappers Playboi Carti, Key!, and Rich the Kid, the tape finds Maxo Kream exploring the intricacies of his public profile and how he is perceived. “Your persona is how you carry yourself,” says Maxo Kream to Complex. “It tells people everything about who you are, so it’s more important than a social security number. This tape is everything I’m about. Persona shit.” With rattling production by the likes of Chuck Inglish, Ryan ESL and Wolfe De Mchls, The Persona Tape is sure to be one of the most celebrated rap releases of the year.

Prior to the tape, Maxo Kream released “Big Worm,” in which he synthesizes the sounds of Southwest Houston with the sound of South London as he repurposes the classic Grime beat from Wiley’s “Morgue,” earning co-signs from Skepta and Wiley, and garnering over 435,000 Soundcloud plays in the process. “Spike Lee,” featuring verses Playboy Carti and Rich The Kid and production from Chuck Inglish, finds Maxo and friends turning up over the booming, horn-filled production with rhymes about their lifestyles filled with women, money, and lean. Other highlights on the tape include the Wldnerness-produced, bass-heavy track “Karo,” the funk-influenced “Comin Dine” and the KEY!-assisted track “Out the Door.”

Last week, Maxo Kream released the Friday-inspired “Big Worm” video. He explained to Complex, “Everybody and their mother watched Friday growing up and has the whole movie memorized. Big Worm was supposed to be the bad guy in the movie but that’s my favorite character. I fucked with how solid Big Worm was in the movie but he still rode around town in an ice cream truck. I grew up on Master P’s “Mr Ice Cream Man,” so off top the ice cream truck was a good idea.” Big Worm followed the release of the nostalgic video for “1998” featuring Joey Bada$$. Hailing from Texas, Maxo Kream is heavy on the national radar following his acclaimed 2015 project #Maxo187, which debuted via Noisey and was labeled by Pitchfork as “a sinister and visceral portrait of Houston street life.” Maxo Kream’s distinct sound and persona have earned him praise by Passion of the Weiss as “Houston’s Savior.”

“This is my persona, enjoy this shit,” instructs Maxo.