Rave On About Ray Vaughn

A couple weeks ago, Top Dawg Entertainment took a hit when TDE superstar Kendrick Lamar announced his forthcoming album will be his last for the label. As we speculate Kendrick’s future along with his cousin Baby Keem’s rise to superstar level, it’s difficult to see a scenario where TDE continues to dominate like they have for the past decade. That is, until it announced Ray Vaughn as its latest signee along with his debut EP for the label, Peer Pressure. 

The Long Beach native is the third oldest born out of seven. Which, by the natural flow of life, gave him an unconventional and hectic childhood. The struggles he and his family endured can be felt in his music, and I mean felt (especially in his 2019 debut album, Idle). Whether it’s a crazy bar he spits or the sub’s shaking your brain inside your head, you feel it. You can hear the pain from his mama’s whoopin’s in his voice, yet he remains charismatic. On this new EP, there’s less pain and more anger in the music. It's indicative of his trials and tribulations. It’s truly incredible. 

In my opinion, Vaughn rose to a Top Dawg level throughout his first Top Dawg project. That’s not to say any of his previous work is unworthy of recognition or by any means “bad” - it means he’s really, damn, good. He initially started poppin’ off on YouTube with the “Freestyle Friday” series, casually racking up millions of views while dropping singles and short EP’s here and there. I’m not going to explicitly recommend you to do a deep dive into his catalogue, because one listen to Peer Pressure will likely send you down that path anyway.

Written By Bryan Kwoun