Coney Island rapper Your Old Droog (featured in our recent Best of NYC Emerging Artists list) derives his name from “Droog,” the Russian word for friend. Indeed, his music is like a walk down rap’s memory lane back to 1994. Initially coming off as another gravel-voiced rapper fresh out the gravel-voiced rapper factory, Droog quickly overcomes initial prejudice with his rapidly evolving rhyme patterns and sardonic wordplay. In “Porno for Pyros” (streaming) from the Kinison EP, Droog emphasizes his relevance saying, “Back in the line of fire. Sayin my style’s dated is like sayin’ wine has expired.” Cheers to that. – BrokeMc
