Longshot is an emcee originally based in Chicago, but now lives in Minneapolis. He’s also one of these artists that has flown under the radar for a lot of people, but it you talk to someone from one of these two cities in the Midwest, they’ll probably start gushing about how good he is. Fortunately, one of those people that did know how good he is was none other than Doomtree producer Lazerbeak. The two got together, and now the power of Longshots words are being amplified by the power of Lazerbeaks production on Parades.

Lazerbeak famously refers to his beats as “Lava Bangers,” so it should come as no surprise that from the opening of this album, everything is just bursting with energy. This works great for Longshot, who is just as charismatic and energetic on the mic, and their chemistry together is fantastic as you can just feel them feeding off each other and inspiring each other. Lazerbeak not only can make beats that bang, he’s got a great sense for song structure, knowing when to build, when to pull back, and when to switch things up. Oh, and he can drop some killer hooks. This all puts Longshot in a great position to succeed, and he makes the most of the opportunity. The opening track, “Just Dance,” is the party anthem that 2018 has been waiting for, and the organ sample keeps giving me life as Longshot shows off his verbal acrobatics and hypes up his listeners. If the whole album was just like this, we’d be lacking some substance, but I probably wouldn’t mind too much, just because it’s that much fun to listen to. Fortunately, we don’t have to worry about that, because when he’s not rapping, Longshot is working as a community activist, and it’s reflected in his lyrics as the album unfolds. The title track is not celebratory song that you might think it would be, but instead takes a moment to create a rallying cry for all those that have lost their lives too soon to police brutality, lamenting that none of these individuals will get a parade in their honor, so we should take a moment to celebrate their lives and work to see if we can put an end to this problem. Longshot might acknowledge the problems facing our society, but he does his best to put a positive spin on things and motivate himself and others to do the work to make things better. Or, as he says on “Deal With It,” “You gotta keep movin’ forward, never retreat, you gotta stand up for it, don’t take a seat.” In fact, “True Story” might be one of the most inspirational songs you’ll hear this year, as Longshot and Lazerbeak craft a perfect pop song about chasing your dreams and building a better tomorrow.

Longshot has been working for a long time, and he’s finally been given a great platform for success by working with Lazerbeak. The great news is that he’s made the most of it, and these two have come together to deliver an album in Parades that is fun, urgent, inspirational, and will make a perfect soundtrack to your summer.