Compton-bred artist Channel Tres drops off his new single, “Black Moses,” featuring JPEGMAFIA. Premiered Tuesday (July 30) as a World Record on Zane Lowe’s Beats 1, “Black Moses” also serves as the title track for Channel’s upcoming sophomore EP.
“Ain’t about me, ain’t about me / Gotta cook it up, c’mon n*ggas hungry / Throwin’ money in the air, can’t drop the ball / If I do, Black Moses on call,” Channel raps in the hook over Godmode producer Nick Sylvester’s booming production.
The song’s title is a nod to late sould legend Isaac Hayes, whose nickname and 1971 album was called Black Moses. Channel says he also sees the title as a complicated sense of responsibility he’s felt for his family since his success.
“Just where I’m from — I’m the first to graduate from college, the first to do a lot of things I’m doing,” he tells HipHopDX. “So I feel like I have to be that for my family.”
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JPEGMAFIA hops in at the 1:30 mark for a gritty verse filled with witty one-liners, like, “I’m skipping to the bank / Bars age like Pharrell.”
“Working on the record [together] was dope,” Channel says. “We met in L.A. and ended up on tour together with Vince Staples, so we were just hanging out a lot at the time. I knew I wanted him on there. I like his verse, it’s really hot.”
Channel spent the summer touring with Childish Gambino in Australia and will join Toro Y Moi on an 11-city North American tour this fall. His sophomore EP, Black Moses, arrives August 16 and will include the previously released singles, “Brilliant N*gga” and “Sexy Black Timberlake.”
“I was listening to a lot of techno at the time and I’m also using my voice more and doing different things with my voice,” he says. “It’ll be good. I spent a lot of time on it, it’s just different.”
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For now, stream his new song with JPEGMAFIA, “Black Moses,” above.
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