Written by Noelle Alarcon In hip-hop, you can’t just drop your words and hope they’ll stick to the beat. It is audible when you don’t mean what you say; the presence (or lack thereof) of bravado alone is enough to make or break a track. In Kartell’em’s latest single, “KITBA,” they have enough bravado to last a lifetime. That much is evident in the swagger that kicks off the song. “Kartell’em in this bitch again!” expects you to have heard of their name, of their achievements, of what they’ve gone through as a group. There’s a certainty–a sense of security in who they are as artists, that floats through its five-minute runtime. The beat may be easygoing, but it lends itself to acting as a canvas for the bars that each collaborator of Kartell’em drops. Each verse is full of personality, with those of Ne7in and Wavyier’s being incredibly tongue-in-cheek–making milli’s and poking fun at titos really put it all together. As ridiculous as some lyrics may seem, Kartell’em never takes themselves too seriously–and that truly grounds them in their suave, signature cool. “KITBA” is straightforward, animated by its clever variations in flow–because how else would you rhyme “play” with “play” and still make it sound interesting? As direct as it is, however, it does leave you hungry for more; looking for a climax or a switch-up–a bit of a palate cleanser in the strings of sentences about abundance. It’s a track with a loud bark, with the potential to have a firmer bite. SUPPORT THE ART AND THE ARTIST: