lulamoon’s Sparkling Production and Reflective Songwriting Shine on opal

lulamoon’s loose flows and hazy production balance sun-kissed contemporary rap with the rawness of east coast boom bap; it's music that’s as easy to throw on for some lush background as it is to sink into and fully take in all the little details and subtle switch-ups. Her previous releases share these same qualities, but opal stretches their potential across fifteen tracks, riding both smooth, retro-styled beats and blown-out digital production while masterfully keeping pace with it all.

Opening with the glitchy, jazz-sampling "carnelian", lulamoon immediately establishes opal's tone: soft, analog instrumentals and smatterings of electronic embellishments complement her reflective and personable songwriting. It’s a lush, gentle palette that allows their lyrics to bend in and out of abstract imagery and tougher, heavier stories of queer life in her home state of Texas. Muted horns and sparkling piano leads in "lavender quartz" provide an elegant, upscale, drumless instrumental for her and MBRK to rap on top of, the richness of bars like “strawberry, cherry gelato mixin’ with perfume” veering off into the line “PayPal look like Elvira, it got big racks” a few seconds later. The subtle humor and detailed writing help fully develop lulamoon’s visions with opal; "amethyst"'s chunky boom bap drums the foundation for anxious romantic yearning while the pounding, distorted 808s in album highlight "ears perk up" give lulamoon and CREEPYSUSIE the opportunity to be more crass and aggressive with their delivery and tone. It’s exciting to hear anecdotes and stories of trans life in contemporary rap, and lulamoon’s decision to use the raw production and energy of today’s experimental hip hop scene to express her experiences being queer and nonbinary in the South produce some of the loveliest music this year.

What other album would include “Lesbian sex!” and an Octavia St. Laurent quote in the same song ("stormé"), and lines as direct and confrontational about the stakes of queer freedom in America as “You fearmongerin’ rats and feed a system that kills us / That energy coming back and you the one who gon’ feel it” ("starfox")? lulamoon includes every part of themselves in opal, her most confident and powerful album yet that further refines her skills as a rapper and producer, an absolute delight from start to finish. You could find many other albums with a similar vibe, but she brings that extra touch of magic to every song here, her unique experiences and position in today’s rap scene producing results like no one else out there. opal is consistent, unique, and immensely fun to listen to — just as all of lulamoon’s previous releases— while improving on every aspect of their musicality, an album with no clear weak points and an instant impact to make for one of this year’s heaviest hitters.

opal is available now on streaming services and for digital purchase on Bandcamp.