Domo Genesis was one of the first rappers to have a project produced entirely by fellow Californian Alchemist, and their 2012 album together, No Idols, proved revelatory. Genesis had spent years playing the sidelines within Odd Future, a talented spitter struggling to stand out next to his more flamboyant and prodigious friends. But over Alchemist’s unfussed loops and minimal drums, Genesis’ presence hardened like magma exposed to air. He sounded invigorated, as ready to zig-zag through tangled rhyme schemes on “Elimination Chamber” as he was to slow down and pay tribute to his beloved marijuana on “Me and My Bitch.” No Idols was warmly received in its heyday, but no one could’ve predicted just how ahead of its time it would be.
Today, loop-based rap music dominates the independent sphere, and Alchemist-produced projects warrant interviews with GQ. Genesis has carved out his own niche as well, switching between the hazy boom-bap of 2017’s Red Corolla and 2018’s Aren’t U Glad You’re U?*—*his team-up with veteran rapper-producer Evidence—and the expansive live-band arrangements of 2016’s Genesis and 2018’s Facade Records. On those earlier projects, Genesis seemed lost, his gifts for rhyming merely a tool to help piece his life back together. Intros, Outros & Interludes, his second joint effort with Evidence, puts all that uncertainty in the past tense. “What I get, I deserve, I’m undeferred, I’m too ahead of the curve,” he says nonchalantly on intro track “Don’t Believe Half,” finding the worth in his peaks and valleys: “I had my head fully submerged under the current/They don’t wanna see me flourish, though.” It’s the most confident he’s sounded in years.
Even though Evidence handles all the production, Intros, Outros & Interludes feels like a mirror reflection of the Alchemist-produced No Idols. Genesis is still hungry and willing to fight for what’s his, but he’s more weathered, more cognizant of when to use his energy to bolster his strength. He rarely references specific hardships, but his delivery sells whatever lessons he’s gleaned. On “Trust the Process,” he doesn’t just work with the “weight of the world on my shoulders”—he approaches it with the strength of a Super Soldier from Marvel Comics. Genesis has a way of sprinkling in quick allusions that map out his mindstate in the fewest moves possible: He compares his skills to wrestler Booker T.’s infamous 1997 speech to Hulk Hogan on “Campfire,” and makes a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it reference to the Righteous Gemstones on “Victories and Losses.” Even at his most dour, there’s always some fun to be had on a Domo Genesis song.
It’s remarkable how much the two have grown since the last time they joined forces. Aren’t U Glad You’re U? was an instance of two artists who clearly liked each other still figuring out how to fit in each other’s universe. Those growing pains are gone on Intros, Outros & Interludes, where their styles interlock effortlessly. Evidence’s production leans hazy and psychedelic, somewhere between a pleasant daydream and a neo-noir soundtrack. The horns and pattering drums of “Don’t Believe Half” are a soft fanfare that Genesis skips over with a smirk. “Victories and Losses” slides by on a slinky lounge-piano sample while “Reverse Card” and “Campfire” seethe with synths. Melancholy mixes with triumph to create a disorienting but inviting atmosphere.
There’s no better place for a rapper as thoughtful and precise as Genesis. He’s comfortable with his lot in life and his skills have stood the test of time. It’s a testament to his vision that Remy Banks, Navy Blue, and Boldy James—all rappers who got their start in the 2010s but took years to truly etch out their space—are all guests on Intros, Outros & Interludes. They’ve watched the modern underground mold itself after a blueprint they’ve long embraced. But unlike Joey Bada$$, who pulled a similar feat on a grander scale with his comeback album 2000, Genesis is still operating with some bite, an animating sense of purpose that goes beyond money and status. “I’m more so in that duffle than I ever been/I’m tussling with the weights, can’t let the devil win,” he says at the end of closing track “Tallulah.” On Intros, Outros & Interludes, it’s easy to believe him.
