20 January, 2023Print
To What End - Oddisee’s 1st LP Since 2017 - Out Today
Listen Here: https://orcd.co/oddisee-to-what-end
January 20, 2023 - Rapper/producer Oddisee’s first LP in 5 years - To What End - is out today.
Self-released on his Outernote Label, To What End finds the deep thinking emcee exploring human ambition over 16 tracks, posing the question: “how far are you willing to go, and why?” Dissecting the human psyche, Oddisee tackles issues like the drive to be accepted, living beyond one’s means, escaping poverty and learning that it’s ok to ask for help. Made over marathon sessions in his Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn studio over the past year, it was produced, written, mixed and performed by Oddisee with contributions from his live band Good Company.
To What End and select singles have led to key coverage including Pitchfork Selects, the New Yorker, Esquire’s Five Fits fashion series, The Fader’s Song You Need, Complex, OkayPlayer, Stereogum, XXL, Washington Post, Brooklyn Vegan, Consequence, and upcoming coverage from KCRW, WNYC Soundcheck, FLOOD Magazine, and more.
Listen to To What End here: https://orcd.co/oddisee-to-what-end
Oddisee previously shared three singles from To What End, including “Ghetto to Meadow” (feat. Freeway), “Hard To Tell” and “Try Again.” He also spent November and December crossing North America with his band, performing nearly 30 shows and headlining venues including Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn. Next up is over a month of shows spanning April and May across Europe and the UK.
The mounting pressure on Oddisee to complete this album, while navigating the challenges of touring and raising a family amongst other things, pushed him to do “the uncomfortable things,” he says, like seeing a therapist for the first time and addressing his own mental health issues. The track “Many Hats” was directly inspired by his therapy experiences, and the realization that it’s ok to ask for, and get help.
Another “uncomfortable thing” that Oddisee confronted on this album was collaboration. Adhering to DIY principals throughout his career, which includes producing, mixing and engineering all of his albums, doing it all himself has always been his mentality. To What End welcomes the most guests and collaborators to the fold than ever before, including Bilal, Phonte, C.S. Armstrong, Noochie, Haile Supreme and Freeway.
Oddisee’s work has been celebrated by NPR, Rolling Stone, Complex, Hypebeast, KCRW, and many, many more. Pitchfork deemed 2017’s trenchant The Iceberg “a focused beam of live-band and hip-hop soul that rattles loudly in our present political moment,” while Stereogum described 2020’s Odd Cure as “gorgeous” and with NPR booking Oddisee for a second NPR Tiny Desk appearance.
To What End - TRACK LIST
01. The Start of Something
02. How Far
03. Many Hats
04. Already Knew
05. Choices Feat. Phonte, Bemy Fiasco & Kay Young
06. Try Again
07. Ghetto To Meadow Feat. Freeway
08. More To Go Feat. C.S. Armstrong
09. All I Need Feat. Olivier St. Louis
10. Bartenders Feat. Toine Jameson
11. Work To Do Feat. Bilal
12. People Watching
13. Hard To Tell
14. Bogarde Feat. Noochie
15. The Way Feat. Haile Supreme and Saint Ezekiel
16. Race