Censored

Feelings of nostalgia have been found to counteract feelings of loneliness and anxiety. So in 2021, after emerging from his third prison sentence, Loski had his mind on some good old days. But far from dwelling on events of his past, the South London drill rapper was on a path of rediscovery. “I had to take it back to the come-up, to get that same authentic feel for this mixtape,” he tells Apple Music. “I didn't want to go in with different producers and set up work around structured beats—I’ve found these instrumentals on YouTube, the same way I found them for my first tape [2018's Call Me Loose]. It’s more a piece for the fans who’ve been with me since that project; that’s a real, hardcore drill tape, so this is a retake.”
On Censored, the Harlem Spartans rapper walks a tightrope between cheeky indifference and downright disrespect, with thrilling results. Rising Camden MC (and one-time jail mate) Suspect joins for the tape’s most infectious drill heater (“Woosh and Push”), SD trades flows on sputtering synth patterns for the Harlem throwback track (“Break It”), and all 10 tracks lean into the complex, belligerent rhymes that characterized Loski’s teen rise. Here, he guides us through his fiery EP.
“Intro” “The first line's censored because it's just a cheeky one, and I can't say who it is. They can keep censoring my words, I really don’t mind. I’ll carry on with making up words to fill in what I'm not allowed to say—I’ll end up making a whole new language one day.”
“Woosh and Push” (feat. Suspect (AGB)) “I met Suspect in 2016. We were in the same prison together. He wasn't rapping then, and I wasn't seriously either. I had made [debut single] ‘Hazards,’ but I went to jail for it, so I definitely wasn't a rapper. He’s from Camden, so we met on a different level back then. In recent years he’s started rapping, and I think he’s hard. If I see someone I know trying to come up, I’ll rock with them and find a way to make music.”
“Rolling Stones” “I feel like the beats in drill have changed completely. Looking back at it, I think at this point, I was still adapting to this new sound. Don’t get me wrong, I like the song—but that’s probably because it’s the best of the bunch I was making.”
“Miss Carter” “This one's sick. I want to say I perfected things on this track, but it was how I knew I wanted this EP to sound. It’s one of my two favorites, even if it is the most censored track on the tape!”
“Break It” (feat. SD) "I had to have SD, one of my brothers from my area, jump on this tune with me. He's just trying to come through right now, so why not help and bring more attention to his name? For a while I was really kind of anti-features. I would always try and keep it within the family. I think [UK rapper and songwriter] Cadet was the first to reach out, and now, I don't care who you know or what you do—if you're hard, I'll show love. I’m not a hater.”
“Rolling Dice” “The hook on this track was the bridge—at first. It was like a four bar that went into the chorus, but management were trying to convince me to flip it into a hook. I told them, ‘No, no, no, no. Forget that, don't be changing no hooks.’ And when I come back to the studio, they’ve played around with it—and I liked it. I was so mad that I liked it! I really, really hate when management is right.”
“Gassed” (feat. Gee Splash) “I went in with [producer] Rymez for this track. It’s literally the only song here that came from a session we put in. This was in the early stages, but I knew it was going to be at the level to put on the EP. It was only about finding the right feature, and luckily, I was able to get my bro Gee Splash on it.”
“P.U.G” “This is the first tune that I dropped after coming out of jail [in summer 2021]. I was excited to release—I’ve noticed that the 'fresh home’ tune is usually a track that people just take to, maybe because they ain't heard from you in so long. I don't mind if the fans speculate on who this is aimed at—I see them trying [online], but I ain't ever going to say. Keep guessing!”
“Mulli” “This is a big shout-out for [rapper] Asco. I want him out of jail, man. No one deserves to be there, so I’m paying homage to him. He’s good peoples, a really genuine guy, and we’re label mates, too. Free him up.”
“Rats” “This track sends out a message, really. I recorded it whilst I was with the mandem, gassed, and I made a proper hardcore drill tune. Talking all my stuff, but having fun with it at the same time. If I had to do a random guess of all the censor cuts on this tape—I reckon about 48, but I’ll see if someone will count them.”