Rick Ross, at a certain point in his career, brought a very luxurious, opulent style of hip-hop into the mainstream a while ago, and since then, it’s had its own very specific charm. This is the kind of rap to sort of enjoy in a more relaxed manner; it goes as hard at a party as it would at your own house with a bottle of liquid courage. Bangalore artists Clifr and Tintin take a page out of this sort of book with their airy, but sparkly and shiny new single ‘Hot Summer’. There’s a place for this kind of material in the popular realm, and the duo put an exclamation point on it.

To be fair, it’s not all about the attitude on this track. There are some really good sonic choices both artists make. Case in point - Clifr’s production. There is a laid-back feel to the groove on this tune that fits it like a glove. Also, he chooses some excellent sounds to use. The horns that anchor the track are triumphant and big. They come from a strong and confident place, and that’s the right way to go. Tintin matches this with, most importantly, his flows. They’re slow and deliberate, so he gets to enunciate his grandiose visions with a very well-executed precision. The beat is great, the bass is oh-so-hard, Clifr’s tag is hilarious (think Woah Kenny almost), and the hook is shockingly simple to rap with (which is what we all do in the bathroom). Braggadocio aside, this isn’t particularly grimy street rap, but it conjures up a rather different image that rap can also do. That image is of putting on shades you got on the road and pretending you’re all that. Who on earth doesn’t find that fun?