The Ones: Dave East, Jay Electronica, & 070 Phi’s “No Hoodie (Nothing to Lose)”

With artists releasing songs at a fast and furious pace it’s difficult for the average hip-hop head to keep track of it all—no matter how tapped in they are. That’s why we created The Ones, a daily post to highlight the song you need to hear curated by the Levels team. We sort through all the new songs—across all the platforms and subgenres—so you don’t have to. Thank us later.

Dave East, Jay Electronica & 070 Phi - “No Hoodie (Nothing to Lose)”

Both Dave East and Jay Electronica have been homeless before, and living on the street is the subject of their song together, “No Hoodie (Nothing to Lose).” The song, a benefit for the nonprofit Hoodies For The Homeless, channels the isolation of not having a home, and how desperation can turn someone violent. Emerging from whatever shrine he’s been studying in for his semi-annual rap verse, Electronica is a sharp as ever, recounting how his experiences affected him: “Walk the streets with no face and name/Nothin’ left to do but embrace the pain/Wanderin’ through this wilderness, while my only companion is hate and shame,” he raps. But it’s Dave East who conveys the harshness of such a situation. Over sinister production, his rapping is rigid and chilling, as vignettes of a life without shelter—sleeping on trains, spending holidays alone, fearing the bitter coldness of a New York City winter—feed a willingness to rob. It is in that moment that literally having nothing left to lose becomes worth a gamble.

Check out previous Ones, and listen to new rap from Dave East, Jay Electronica, 070 Phi, and more on our Spotify playlist, Apple Music playlist, and SoundCloud playlist.

Originally Appeared on Pitchfork