Listening to the latest Six One Tribe single, “Sky Is Not The Limit“, I’m overwhelmed to share a prediction – the dreaded sophomore slump will not apply to Six One Tribe. In fact, I’ll go as far as to say that the forthcoming second record from the massive hip-hop collective will far surpass their debut record.
Having sixteen members in a group is a lot to handle. Having front page coverage from the local alt weekly before you’ve released an actual album is quite a bit of pressure itself. I don’t know the inner workings of the Tribe but my assumption was that the first record was getting their feet wet and getting comfortable with one another but not yet achieving the level of comfort where they can push their own envelope.
None of these predictions are based in fact – just observations from the outside. “Sky Is Not The Limit” is an elevated beat for the group embracing simplicity and beauty. Intylect, HB Mandella, BLVCK WIZZLE and Gee Slab all serve up confident verses; their individual personalities coming through with personal insights and clever wordplay. Even the video itself is elevated as you can feel the comfort between the performers.
Six One Tribe is pumping out a lot of material here in the first half of 2023 and I’ve got high hopes that their second full-length continues the trend of this first taste.