The Caribbean has always been a hotbed for some of the best new talent in the hip-hop and reggae roots scene, so it’s no surprise to hear Chino Sing coming out of the Dominican music scene with his brand of Spanish-Caribbean-style reggae roots. He’s been honing his skills with multiple projects-–including his band Colectivo Márohu—in the D.R. and the U.S. for the past eight years, and now he’s getting ready to release his full length by dropping “Me Voy.”
Chino Sing has made it his priority to compose rhythms and beats that give off a mixture of vibes, going from chill out, to happy go lucky, to melancholy. For the first few seconds of “Me Voy,” Sing tricks us into thinking he’s about to perform a slow, sad piano ballad, but then shifts into some classic reggae roots rhythms reminiscent of Cultura Profética and Dread Mar. This creates a strange but welcoming contrast with the lyrics, in which Sing gives us a postmortem of a relationship gone awry. The song also has some bits of jazz and ska (as do most of his tracks), which also gives you a sense of the type of influences he’ll bring to his new record when it drops.
“Me Voy” also showcases Sing’s charming croon, which is one of his best assets. Even though he sticks mostly to the romantic themes, you can hear another side of the multifaceted artist in tracks like “Cuero, Tabaco y Ron,” as he raps over synths and a raw beat.