Unleash the Nightbeast
The Nightbeast
The new sophomore album from Dayton rapper/jokester/all-around nice guy Nick Testa — aka the Nightbeast — is titled You’re Welcome. And it’s definitely enough to make even the most jaded hip-hop fan exclaim “Thank you!” Testa’s long-awaited follow-up to his nerdcore rap classic-in-the-making Inside Jokes For Outside Folks is a joyously nutty good time, crammed with ditties celebrating college hedonism (“Full Ride”) and bemoaning the hell out of being a fat, hairy man during a hot Dayton summer (“Livin’ Large”). Plus, when you hear a song paying loving tribute to Lisa Frank — remember her? You had her portfolios in your Trapper Keeper in middle school — you know this isn’t your older brother’s hip-hop. The pop culture-obsessed Testa references everything from Chewbacca to The Adventures of Milo and Otis to Fezzik from The Princess Bride in his sweetly nerdy rhymes, which amount to $6.93 worth of pure, fizzy, effervescent hip-hop joy. Thanks for making us laugh, Nick. You’re Welcome is available on iTunes.
— Jason Webber
