2slimey @ Soundwell 11.08.2026

The influence social media (more specifically short-form content) has had on the hip-hop genre in the past 5 years is pretty noticeable. People who were untouchable and immensely respected at the top of the decade are often ridiculed online because of how fast the tide can turn on someone based on something as simple as a meme. The artists just now coming up who seem to be on track to great things often nose-dive just as fast because of how quickly the fans decide they don’t like the sound anymore. Trends become more recognizable, grow quicker and people get over them sooner. So, what happens if you use the platform’s trending sounds to push your own music that’s actually quite a contrast to said sounds? Will you see success?

A little over a year ago, 2slimey had one album out (SsoMe) and he was starting to pick up steam for the songs he was promoting via Triller and their local convenience store. The songs were noticeably different from a lot of the most popular artists in that space at the time. But the reactions were pretty negative online. People didn’t take the songs seriously and they took it as mostly a joke.

But why didn’t 2slimey get to be taken seriously? The songs were still akin to trap trends of the time, but the main difference people didn’t like was the similarities these snippets shared with noise. Again, Why? This is a genre that has over a century of history, and the ideals and DNA of the genre trace back to Italy. It’s a genre with real history, real listeners, and real appreciation. So, on paper 2slimey should have no less of an opportunity to incorporate another genre’s sound into hip-hop because mixing genres is nothing new.

Despite negative reactions to his social media content, 2slimey has always been serious. He left Oklahoma City for Los Angeles fueled by his dreams, so he wasn’t going to let Instagram comments shut him down. He stayed consistent with his music. Eventually, the tides started to turn. He was featured on PlaqueBoyMax’s In The Booth, and he saw support from Lil Uzi Vert, someone who is always uplifting new artists. Most notably, Anthony Fantano gave his 2025 project High Anxiety a genuinely positive review. 

This album was a big step up for him. It gained him a solid fanbase, and the songs had much more solid production, with vocals that were memorable enough to turn these tracks into solid checkpoints for the sound he was working on creating. You could see and hear his progress with this album, he was finally playing live shows, and he was making upgrades to all areas of his craft. This luck powered into this year with a new nickname “The King Of Mexico,” a 2026 underground sound cypher and a deluxe to High Anxiety, which was titled More Anxiety.

One of my favorite upgrades 2slimey made to his world of music over this time was the imagery and visuals that go with his music. A lot of the big changes were thanks to @varovisuals; he’s incredibly talented and has done a great job of giving 2slimey’s music a memorable image and tone. Varo directs his music videos, does tour promotion, and just breathes a lot of life into his discography. The upgrades his team made in these areas have been especially noticeable in his live shows as well. It’s the posters, the outfits he has on stage, and the visuals on screen at his shows that work with him to become so much more of a memorable artist on the stage.

This has shown, as the tours he’s been doing have become a super important part of his career. The most recent one, the Straight Bass Tour, came through Salt Lake City this last weekend. He’s got new music, a new look with blonde hair and a great amount of fans for an underground show in SLC. The speakers were turned up louder than literally any other show I have seen outside of Rolling Loud festivals, and it made sense for a show like this. The opener, DJ Melendez (@melendez808 on IG), did a great job building the energy and not overstaying his welcome, and 2slimey came out like a bullet train of energy and kept the energy at the ceiling until the show ended. It was so cool to see an artist that not too long ago was treated like a joke play songs that the crowd instantly knew and hooked onto.

It was a great night, and it made me feel bad that his team is having to deal with yet another phase of less-than-stellar PR. People lately are having a field day making fun of nothing more than his appearance, which is pretty lame. But if his career has proved anything already, it’s that he knows how to not only stay unfazed by negative attention but use it to turn the tide in his favor, so I have a feeling this will all only push him to new heights. He and his team clearly know what they’re doing inside the “weird” space hip-hop is in as of right now, and they clearly know how to traverse the world of promotion through social media, so I wish them nothing but the best. —Travis Ockey

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Akropolis Reed Quintet @ Libby Gardner Concert Hall 11.05.2026
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