Ozay Moore, fka Othello, is an emcee who has been making music for the last twenty years, both as a solo artist and as part of groups like Lightheaded. The last time we heard form him was back in 2015, when he dropped The Between Time EP. Now he comes back with one of his most ambitious albums to date, In The Wake of O.

Moore originally came up in Seattle, but he moved to Lansing, Michigan, about ten years ago. However, if you’re expecting some Detroit hip hop, you’re sadly mistaken. He might live in the Midwest, but Ozay Moore’s music is strictly West Coast. Enlisting the production of Stro Eliot, Tall Black Guy, Ess Be, Freddie Joachim, and Ohmega Watts, this album is full of laid back and smooth hip hop and R&B. It’s the type of album that will sound amazing in your car as you drive around late at night in the summer. What makes the album special, though, is just how engaged Ozay Moore sounds on this album, and how far reaching it is for him. On paper, this looks like it could easily have just been another hip hop album that was enjoyable, but nothing indicates that it’s anything special. However, when you being to listen to it, you hear Moore really open up and reflect on his life and career up to this point. Everything from the name change, his religion, the ridiculous racial politics of this country, and his decision to uproot and relocate to Michigan and become a family man. It’s just an incredibly personal album, and Moore really takes the time to spell out everything he’s been through and what it means to him. In doing so, he takes what could have been another fun party album and made it an album that you’ll form a much deeper connection with. But don’t get me wrong – this album is plenty funky, and Moore still manages to have a good time and still delivers on the smooth flow and charisma that got him attention way back when.

The Wake of O is the type of album that you love to hear from a veteran that’s been around as long as Ozay Moore has. He sounds just as engaged in the music as he’s ever been, and he really bares it all to his listeners on this album as he looks back on a career that’s had its up and downs.