Looking Up

Bottom of the Boro (Alley Cat Productions)

Do

By Kory Wilcoxson

In some ways, Bottom of the Boro is like many other rap albums you've heard. Presented and accounted for are the typical boasts and the requisite R-rated references. If a rapper decides to follow that well-worn path, he better have something else that will make him rise up in this overcrowded rap room.

Owensboro rapper Dō shows promise of doing that. Bottom is uneven, but when Dō gets into his flow, his rhyming and delivery soars above the average beats and bass lines. It takes him a few songs to get there, but when he kicks into "Freestyle" and "Code of Silence," Dō gives a glimpse of his potential.

As he continues to grow, Dō will be best served by finding beats to match his rhyme skills. The doorbell sample on "Omega Struggle" gives the song an identity, something that Dō is already developing through his lyrics. If the production of his songs grows with him, Dō may well put Owensboro on the rap map.