It’s a new world for TooMxchRaw

A lot can happen in ten years: maturity, career changes, parenthood, and new visions of self. And if there’s one thing you can rely on in life, it’s that change is constant, and sometimes the only thing you can do is adapt.

After coming home from incarceration in 2002, TooMxchRaw decided to give rapping a shot. While he was still inside, he got to witness firsthand the lyricism and technicality of Philly battle rapper Reed Dollaz, with whom he was locked up. Around this same time, TooMxchRaw lost a friend and fellow musician named Shizz. Before his passing, Shizz was working on a song called “Gone Fishing.” TooMxchRaw decided to apply what he learned in placement, mixed with mentorship from his father (who had his own musical practice as a DJ), to Shizz’s song. The track got him a bit of recognition in his neighborhood and his peers began seeing him for the fierce MC that he was. The rest was history. In 2014 TooMxchRaw dropped his first official project: R.A.W. – Recognize A Warrior.

Not long after the release of this project, TooMxchRaw found himself being a single parent to a beautiful baby girl. This added responsibility gave him a new sense of purpose and maturity. This new stage in his life required him to put some things on hold. Unfortunately, this included his music career. In addition to focusing on fatherhood, TooMxchRaw concentrated on earning his welding license, and starting his own business, and now he is currently pursuing a commercial driver’s license.

“For the last ten years I’ve been being a parent – my daughter got sickle cell – so I didn’t have the space to be creative,” says TooMxchRaw. “It put me in a different space to understand life and parenting. It taught me maturity and how to be a man.”

TooMxchRaw | photo by Melissa Simpson for WXPN

After striking the balance and finding a sturdy enough foundation to make space for creativity, TooMuchRaw was back in the booth. In September, he released GOODSTOCK, an 8-track EP that highlights his range and mastery of lyricism. The project highlights the artist’s range: There are radio-friendly bops, straight-up street anthems, boom-bap raps for the heads, a “woke” track where he contemplates the state of the world, and even a hypersexual tracks for the ladies. TooMxchRaw wanted to make sure that GOODSTOCK highlighted his versatility.

“I wanted to show you that we can create bops,” says TooMxchRaw. “I can still be melodic, I could still dumb it down and go to a certain level, but also I can get lyrical. I also can show my vulnerability, be transparent, and give a piece of my life.”

One of TooMxchRaw’s more personal tracks is “PTSD.” Here, he refers to a strained relationship that he had with the mother of his child. Ultimately his goal was to be able to speak his truth without disparaging people who may have caused him harm in the past. As with his own life, time often brings maturity.

“Like, I didn’t really want to expound on it or discredit her, because ultimately she became a better mother –  you get what I’m saying,” says TooMxchRaw. “That was years ago when I felt that way, but again, I was gone for ten years. Maybe that was year two that I was speaking on.”

The album cover to GOODSTOCK  is a striking one. It features an image of a young girl — it’s a childhood photo of  TooMxchRaw’s partner — standing next to a Doberman that is sitting at the same height as the child. The child stands next to the dog, completely at ease with her thumb in her mouth. When looking at this album, the viewer might ponder what can be considered good stock in this image: the menacing dog, the innocent child or both. When asked about the title and the use of the image, TooMxchRaw explained that he grew up in a two-parent household and still has an amazing relationship with both of his parents. His partner and her family (her mother took the photo that serves as the album cover) also come from “good stock.”

“My parents raised some good people and I’m a representative of that,” says TooMxchRaw. “A lot of my friends come from good stock too. We all go through rough times and trials and errors. Even though sometimes we may not speak or whatever the case should be, people are going through their own personal things in their own time, and it takes for you to be mature enough to understand that and give people the space to grow and go through what they’re going through.”

One could argue that TooMxchRaw came up in one of Philly’s many golden eras of hip-hop. Being from Nicetown, TooMuchRaw witnessed neighborhood dudes rise to fame including Major Figgas, Neef Buck, and Young Chris. This paired with the guidance of his father, the DJ, inspired TooMxchRaw to forge his own path in music.

The raw and gritty nature that is exuded in TooMxchRaw’s raps draws an unwavering through-line to the time that he came up. There’s no pretense, and little to no musical distraction by way of autotune or dance rhythms. It’s straight spiting. Witnessing him vibe out in the booth at Audeoboi Studio over a brand new beat was awe inspiring – he was truly a man in his element, a man who at his core truly understands the creativity and cerebral nature of rapping.

TooMxchRaw | photo by Melissa Simpson for WXPN

“The internet came in like a thief in a night and just took a lot of talent and a lot of creativity,” says TooMxchRaw. “Just imagine if Major Figgas and all of them had YouTube around that time. Just imagine the impact they would’ve had. I think it probably would’ve been a little different, but now everything’s microwaveable. It was important for me to come back and give a little bit more substance and show a little bit more organicness.”

Despite his reverence for days of yore, TooMxchRaw is deeply enthusiastic by the metrics and and data that can be found when uploading music to DSPs. The last time he dropped he was distributing his mixtapes “hand to hand.” A stark contrast to how freely and widely music is shared across platforms today.

“Last time I dropped…people was coming to the crib buying them jawns,” says TooMxchRaw. “I have family in Baltimore. The fact they they can just download my music on their devices, that is dope as shit! I never had that experience before. But the fact that they already have this service right there on their phones and we can just go in and hone in and I can be a part of an algorithm of different music is crazy. And to be able to chart what you doing, where you being played, I’m amazed by that. I ain’t gonna lie, I’m ecstatic.”

What’s next for TooMxchRaw? He’s been steady hitting up show across Philly and NYC in order to push GOODSTOCK and network with other folks in the industry. The project is a sampler pack that’s meant to highlight his range and ultimately encourage collaboration across artforms. One of the most interesting and admirable things about TooMuchRaw is his dedication to feedback. The good, bad, and ugly, he wants it all – he wants to be at his best and he can only get there with honestly and transparency. Immediately after the GOODSTOCK drop, he took to his Instagram stories to ask listeners about their favorite songs and what they thought of the album. He didn’t hoard the responses in his DMs but put them in his stories as well for the world to see.

TooMxchRaw’s inherent desire to learn, not being beyond reproach, and willingness to grow and collaborate damn near confirms his future success. He believes it, he’s working diligently towards it, so it’s his.

TooMxchRaw’s GOODSTOCK is out now on all streaming platforms. Find it here and follow him on Instagram at @toomxchraw.