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Music

G Milla Keeps Us on Our Toes with ‘On the Edge’

The Toronto rapper and Hard to Kill member delivers a mind-bending new project that recalls the formative days of the city’s rap scene.
G Milla

Even before he made his name as part of the duo Hard to Kill with fellow Torontonian Teddy Fantum, rapper G Milla made music that embodied the city’s dark, sludgy hip-hop during its immediate post-Drake boom at the beginning of the decade. His early songs with Daniel Worthy and other cloudy production luminaries introduced listeners to a charismatic, slightly menacing figure whose slitheringly slow melodies could communicate insidiousness and playfulness in equal measure. While G’s new solo project On the Edge does return to those sounds at points, it’s not the only trick he has up his sleeve.

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“3D” is am upbeat celebration of partying and 808s, even name-dropping the ubiquitous bass sound in the lyrics “I Can’t Tell” has G pondering being caught in a metaphorical purgatory with a yearning, melodic performance, offset by “Half” and its ping-ponging, minimalist production (the varied beats were handled by Saintfall, The Lobby, Teddy Fantum, and drp.out). Closing on the introspective post-rock guitars of “Fear,” On the Edge does a fine job of reintroducing G Milla to a wider audience and his own roots.

Noisey: What are the messages you’re exploring on this project?
G Milla: The theme of On The Edge is being on the edge of your reality, disconnecting from it, and seeing the world the way you want to see it. With this project, I wanted to capture different sides of my personality and also separate myself as a solo artist, for all the G Milla fans to get a solo body of work.

How would you compare your creative process as a solo artist compared to being part of Hard to Kill?
From working alongside Teddy, my solo process has changed to become more conceptual and structured, but still the same, only more personal.

Which song are you most proud of?
I'm proud of all of them, but “No Holding Hands” captures that raw essence of G Milla in terms of tonality and lyrically brings me back to that 2012 downtown vibe.