When you think of Texas rappers, names that come to mind might include Megan Thee Stallion, Lizzo, and Travis Scott. However, past the layer of megastars is an underbelly of street rappers with a ferocious entrepreneurial spirit and menacing music.

One of the titans of this crop of rappers is Peso Peso. The Galveston County native’s new album El Patron is loaded with vignettes about navigating street life, overcoming poverty, and losing loved ones.

El Patron

Sonically, the album is a blend of tried and true Peso and pensive, almost 90s hip-hop-esk storytelling. Peso juxtaposes street and lyrical rap in a way many in Texas street rap haven’t done.

El Patron’s stylistic spectrum starts with tracks like “Blooda” ft. The Real Drippy, a cut that is trademark Peso Peso. Produced by frequent collaborator Quad Woofer, Peso’s potent punch-in flows are what fans have grown to love about him. Peso then experiments with the album’s lead track “Andale”. The song is a Ted Talk on how to trap and rides a bouncy, West Coast style beat.

“My homebody No Luck from Cali sent me the beat and that shit was crazy…basically, I recorded it in 10-15 minutes. I had a lot going on at that time so I had a lot of ammunition,” Peso explained.

Relationship with Sauce Walka

On the other side of this album’s sonic and lyrical spectrum is “Reminiscing” with Sauce Family (aka TSF) head honcho Sauce Walka. Peso and Sauce detail growing up in poverty and losing loved ones with lines like “I had to grow up in the slammer, I was locked up in the cell when I heard about Miranda”. The TSF label mates’ chemistry is undeniable, in part due to their close relationship in and outside of music.

“That’s big bro,” Peso stated. “He be putting me on game…tryna drive me in the right direction. He taught me about promoting myself, branding myself, [and] rap hustling.”

Texas Rap

Sauce’s ability to instill the aforementioned hustling spirit into his protege helped turn Peso into one of the premier independent acts in Texas hip-hop. While he noted that he’s not anti-label, he did explain that being independent is a staple of the current climate in Texas street rap.

“A lot of us are independent and it’s been like that for a very long time. A lot of people like the independent route in Texas because you can get rich being independent in Texas. There are so many major cities in Texas and so many small cities, it’s just so much money,” Peso stated.

However, Peso’s statement wasn’t just a rap flex. Not only was his interview conducted via Zoom in his Lamborghini, but the rapper is constantly letting his fans know about shows he’s doing all around Texas via Instagram.

Make sure to follow Peso Peso on Instagram and check out El Patron on all platforms now!