Mickey Factz is a part of that echelon of MCs who revere the late eighties and early nineties to the point where they relive it verbatim and aspire to bring it back to the charisma and creativity that produced the golden era. Don’t get it twisted; Factz isn’t stuck in the past. He is creating a new appreciation of Hip-Hop by being retroactive. He and his crew, GFCNY, a group of like-minded fashion obsessed New Yorkers, come together to offer Rap music that isn’t stale or overdone. Heaven’s Fallout(GFC) pushes the boundaries of what Hip-Hop is suppose to sound like. Mickey rhymes over an eclectic mix of beats from Electronica to Rock to House. He doesn’t involve himself in hood bravado or making it rain. However, he can name drop little known designers and brag about his travels around the world. He is definitely Lupe Fiasco’s contemporary.
And like the Midwest maverick he doesn’t dum down his lyrics with gratuitous violence or self-righteous preaching. On “Never Fallout” he rhymes over rock band Fallout Boy’s smash hit “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s a Arms Race.” His lyricism reclaims the song as more than a remix, but his own: Here goes the fright / Ni***s read the tabloids just to learn your life / But I keep my arms / So I’m ready to strike / When I reach out my arms / You can feel my might / And my wings expand / And I just take flight. He also breathes new life into Prodigy’s cult classic “Smack My B#### Up.” Mickey matches the angry high energy of the song rhyming “Y’all know I’m not crime related / But y’all ‘bout to get annihilated.” Addressing the issue that he may be perceived as soft because he makes positive music, he attacks all naysayers with a barrage of rhyming ability that leaves little doubt that he can hold his own.
Still, all eclectic and creative risks aren’t good ones. His songs for the ladies border on corny. “You Remind Me,” sounds like a musical score to some fancy RPG game. “Let You Go” is all White girl 80’s pop, complete with synthesizers and a mediocre singer on the hook. Heaven’s Fallout is more hits than misses though. Mickey Factz steps out of the box on this effort and raises the bar on creativity. His personal style is retro, but the energy he brings to the music is modern and futuristic. He’s definitely one of the front-runners for the leader of the new school.
Mickey Factz
“Talk Yo Sh*t”
Mickey Factz
“Living Dead”