Whenever has been out for roughly 5 months, the duo and their homies have wrapped a tour in support of the album and now fans get to sit back and enjoy the spoils. And don’t let the drop in streaming numbers fool you – we need and appreciate the music now more than ever. And, if you haven’t listened to Whenever in a while, throw it back on and get a taste for how wonderful the surprise album really is. Yes, it’s only been a handful of months, but it’s aging quite nicely and I’m noticing various little intricacies I overlooked before letting it resonate.
Atmosphere join forces with Hxppy Thxxghts favorite Gifted Gab, the legendary Murs and Haphduzn on the official visual treatment for “Whenever,” the album’s title track. Directed by Tomas Aksamit, who has brought life to the Whenever visuals thus far, “Whenever” is a captivating cinematic experience. While I don’t know when it was shot, it feels perfect for our modern day, with each artist isolated in their appearance. As Ant enters an empty movie theater, we soon see all four of our protagonists taking on a unique role as the visual plays out. I’m not trying to spoil the details, but “Whenever” is wild creative, engaging and does well playing with various historical and pop-culture phenomenons.
In regards to the record itself, “Whenever” captures a wide spectrum of unique and enigmatic artistry. Despite all four emcees stepping up with their varying flows, energy and styles, the resulting product is one of incredible fidelity. It’s clear from how well they all come together on wax that an authentic friendship and respect exists between Slug, Gab, Murs and Haphduzn. And this relationship – and friendly competition – helps to highlight the clever bars and layered prose they all bring to the table.
When Hxppy Thxxghts linked with Slug earlier this year, the Atmosphere emcee shared a little backstory on “Whenever”:
A little while later, I hit her up to see if she wanted to spit a verse on this posse cut. The best part is this, man…it was me, her and Haphduzn. And she was like, you know who would sound good on here? Murs. I was like, nah, fuck Murs (laughs). So, immediately, I hit up Murs. I kind of put Murs on there just to surprise her and make her be like, oh shit, you took my advice. I didn’t even tell her I was putting Murs on until the song was complete and sent her the link. She heard Murs on there and it’s like, yeah, that was your idea. And Murs kills it…Murs is amazing.
Whenever is available now on all your favorite streaming platforms.
Enjoy Atmosphere’s “Whenever” visual below.
