Suté Iwar has a pedigree that is solidified. He zooms into the era of Ultralight after years of pioneering new shades of rap music that inform the New Gen sound. The alté identity, although liberating to a decent degree, puts artists in a box. Suté has grown bigger than that, and his latest album sees him re-introduce himself as a force to be reckoned with in a rap scene that seeks to revive itself after recently going stale.

“EARTH ANGEL” is the archetypal Suté Iwar track. He bounces off the boom-bap beat with precision, his honest words reverberating louder than the record’s kicks. Suté’s music has always existed within the realm of airy introspection and even though he’s comfortable on the record, this familiarity does not breed contempt. Each album is a building block for the next while helping you understand the last, and “EARTH ANGEL” is the clearest indication that Suté Iwar is at his most complete on ULTRALIGHT.

Suté wears his heart on his sleeve on “Earth Angel”. He opens up with a stream of consciousness letting us into his mind and his reservations about industry politics. He distances himself from that entirely as he “eats from another plate” different from others. Ogranya’s repetitive chant of “no gree make dem whine you” feels like an inner voice moment that rings in your head long after the song stops. It encapsulates Suté’s defiant mood through the record’s 2:22 minutes.

He speaks of a shared human experience with the listener. “I am just like you chained by these chains/need some fly shit and some spare change… everything I thought I needed, I can’t get enough”. There is a tug-of-war between what we need and want; an element of misplaced priorities is present in everyone. At this point, Suté wants his listener to feel seen and heard. This use of vulnerability is one of the key points of Suté’s music; his words are just as important as the kicks that populate your headphone space.