Three years after his first solo album, 2009's Lieber Bleib Ich Broke, and one year after he founded his own label (Freunde von Niemand -- "Friends of Nobody"), German rapper
Vega released his second album,
Vincent. Largely produced by
Johnny Pepp, Cristal, and Cubeatz, with additional production by Philip Buchholz ("Wasser") and F7 ("Kannst du Es Seh'n"),
Vincent features bombastic beats and gloomy instrumental backdrops with piano, orchestra, and choir. Apart from the usual boasting and some unfortunate homophobic and misogynistic remarks,
Vega offers lyrics that rely on impressionistic, dramatic imagery more than full-fledged storytelling. The record features guest appearances by two of
Vega's labelmates,
Bosca and Timeless (on "Mit dem Kopf Durch die Wand" and "Kannst du Es Seh'n," respectively), and entered the German charts at number five. ~ Christian Genzel