729 is the Birmingham duo of emcee OZU and producer Erthling. They got together about four years ago on July 29th (hence the name), and since that time they’ve been steadily crafting some really inventive and passionate hip hop. Just last summer, we got a full-length album called from them called X8. Now they’ve come right back with another full-length album, this time self-titled.

The craziest thing about making this their self-titled album is that this particular album is more of a posse album than anything they’ve done in the past. It is more of a Birmingham hip hop album than just a 729 album. Don’t get me wrong, OZU is still leading the way with some dope verses and some really catchy-yet-intricate choruses, and Erthling. is still giving us some great experimental sample-based beats, but the album really opens up to showcase just how deep the bench is in the Magic City. Over the course of the album, we’re hearing from Black Plastique, Inkline, Linnil, Yusef Sharad, Dolo Fibonacci, Phrasure, Fathom, Carlos Charm, Joshua, G.I. Magus, Dean Priest, Controversy, Akil Pratt, ChriStyle, Cutt Dogg, D-Gut, and K1NG ELJAY. Too often when you get this many cooks in the kitchen, at least one artist will derail the album with some tired cliches or offensive lines, but not here. 729 have built a steady foundation over the last couple of years, and they didn’t reach out to the homies, they reached out to homies with legitimate talent who understood the assignment and each one of them came back with bars that lined up with the song that will make you think and feel as a listener. This is a posse album that is great to listen to and vibe out to the first time through, but the second time through you’re going to be on that pause and rewind grind because with each verse you’re going to be like, “Wait – what did he just say?!”

I’ve been banging the drum for the Birmingham hip hop scene since I moved to Alabama in 2017. There is a ton of really talented artists who deserve a hell of a lot more shine than they currently get. Now I can just point people to 729 and tell them to take notes. This is a great creative hip hop album that showcases not just the talents of OZU and Erthling., but the whole city they rep.