Is Hit-Boy’s “The Chauncey Hollis Project” the Next Step in the Era of the Producer?

If you go past the mainstream appeal of Drake’s new project “Dark Lane Demo Tapes,” and turn the corner at Lil Baby’s deluxe of his latest project, “My Turn” you’ll find a hidden gem with a vibe of the past from producer Hit-Boy, titled “The Chauncey Hollis Project.” Hit-Boy’s status mainly comes from his part in producing beats like Jay-Z & Kanye West’s “Niggas In Paris,” Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode,” and the late Nipsey Hussle’s “Racks in the Middle.” However, Hit-Boy has also been putting forth bars, showing his ability to rap on multiple occasions dropping his 2018 project “Tony Fontana.” However, I wasn’t aware of his rapping ability. That is until I stumbled upon his most recent release “The Chauncey Hollis Project.” 

The project, which dropped on May 1st, consists of twelve songs that ultimately equate to a 34 minutes of the day well spent for anyone who likes boom-bap rap and bars. “The Chauncey Hollis Project” also boasts a good amount of features most notably Benny The Butcher and Dom Kennedy. Also appearing on Hit-Boy’s self-produced project is Thurz and Kent M$ney. 

Out of the twelve songs that make up this project, eight of them have found their way to my everyday playlist. However, if I had to pick some highlights of the project, I’d pick “First String,” and “Levitating.” 

“First String” serves as the first track on the project and boy does it set the tone for the project. The simple muffled bass paired with a bright piano melody and gentle high hat pattern shows Hit-Boy’s talent for production, while Hit-Boy the MC shines through. 

However, the most important song on “The Chauncey Hollis Project” is the final song on the project, titled “Levitating.” On this track, Hit-Boy hits us with the line “pray for the producer like you pray for the marines, ‘cause the DSPs barely paying off the streams.”

What this line highlights is the trend amongst producers to take autonomy with their beats and start releasing projects themselves. Showcased by producers like Metro Boomin, Mustard, and Pi’erre Bourne, producers have taken the initiative to put themselves in situations where the spotlight is on them.  

Metro Boomin released a compilation project titled “NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES” in November 2018  and while Metro Boomin didn’t rap on the project, he was able to secure some high profile features from Gucci Mane, Travis Scott, 21 Savage, Gunna, Young Thug, Drake, and the list goes on and on. The project was made up of thirteen songs but twenty-six tracks, the first half with the features rapping on Metro’s beats and the second half featuring just the previous thirteen beats so the listener can really listen to the intricacies of a Metro beat. The project also featured the first time 21 Savage used his whisper flow on “Don’t Come Out The House” and for that, I’m forever thankful.

Pi’erre Bourne, on the other hand, released a project in June 2019 titled, “The Life Of Pi’erre 4.” This was the fourth installment of Pi’erre Bourne’s series where he showcases his beats and his rapping over it. Personally, “The Life Of Pi’erre 4” was the project of the year to me simply because of the cohesion from song to song with each beat seamlessly transitioning from one another making the project feel like one fifty minute beat with sixteen transitions. Pi’erre’s vocals on the beats perfectly complimented what Pi’erre was trying to do sonically making it a masterpiece. In an interview with Complex, Pi’erre has since revealed that the fifth installment to “The Life Of Pi’erre” series will be his last and he also plans to put the first three on major DSPs in the near future. 

Also dropping in June last year was Mustard’s “Perfect Ten,” a compilation project which similarly to Metro’s “NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES” featured big-name artists like the Migos, YG, Meek Mill, Future, Young Thug, Ty Dolla $ign, Ella Mai, etc… rapping on beats curated by the projects main artist, the producer, in this case, Mustard. However, the main story of this project was the presence of Roddy Ricch’s “Ballin’” which was the start of the Roddy Ricch coming out party that we have witnessed throughout the first half of 2020. 

With Metro Boomin’s “NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES,” Pi’erre Bourne’s “The Life Of Pi’erre 4,” Mustard’s “Perfect Ten” and now Hit-Boy’s “The Chauncey Hollis Project” all dropping within the last two years, and a higher spotlight on the craft of making beats in general, it's safe to expect that producers will become the talk of the rap game if they aren’t already at that level. And I for one can’t wait to hear more compilation albums from the people responsible for some of the biggest beats of all time.