Luh Kiddo & King Marlo| Dynamic Single ‘Top Dawg’ Plays On Urban Ethics

Richmond Rap Artist Luh Kiddo strikes gold with King Marlo on their fresh release of “Top Dawg” and it’s paired visual.  The record features Kiddo, a young-blood urban Emcee bringing authentic narratives to the forefront of his content, and King Marlo, the lauded multi-talent wonderboy also from Richmond, boasting some strong personal accomplishments and even stronger bars.  The two deliver a versatile and very real performance wherein their art truly imitates life, showing once again that Central Virginia has much more to offer than it’s rich tobacco lineage.

21 year old Luh Kiddo hails from the West End of Richmond, Virginia, a city known from the outside for it’s artisanal presence and thriving tattoo culture.  But the artists there tell a very different, much grittier story, and like his peers Luh Kiddo provides us with a magnifying glass over this world through his notable south of the Mason-Dixon dialect and incredibly unique delivery. 

“…They put that boy up on the stand, now he a hot dog…”

Kiddo muses on urban ethics, the code of conduct that rules the street, over a Drill/Trap Hybrid Instrumental.  The most notable example for the outside looking in is the distinct anti-snitch policy, upheld strictly and punishable by death.  However, the Law of the Street is significantly more expansive, regulations one couldn’t know unless they’ve walked those avenues.  Kiddo’s accent cadenced hook tells the details of the life many don’t have a choice to live.  30 year bids, an abundance of opps, and death threats with conviction aren’t atypical for this tenacious artist, who asserts he is the Top Dog.  And whether that’s up for debate or not, he absolutely means it. 

King Marlo himself rests easy on his laurels; strong production credits including PnB Rock, Lost Loaded, A-Boogie, and Young Crazy amongst others. Not only does he produce the track, he delivers a chiseled contemporary verse between Kiddo’s rock solid hook.  With the autotune component, he gives contrast and dynamics to a street formulated and executed concept, turning the sonics upside down to engrave his name and story on the track. 

“… oh that’s your man huh?  Heard he took the stand…”

Marlo revisits the key of the hook in the verse, while riffing on topics including personal success and work ethic, as well as the fundamental guap, hoes, and jewelry.  It’s variety in flow and lyrical grace give Kiddo a run for his money, trading punch for speed but when choosing to, showing a mastery of both as well as his meter. 

The gangland visual shot by the brilliant Domico Phillips is the truest depiction of the Artist’s realities, set in their neighborhood, with their kin, and on their ball court.  Their turf gives Kiddo and Marlo the home field advantage, a driving factor on the debate between cap or no cap?  Are our artists really about what they say they’re about?  Luh Kiddo and Marlo respond yes, emphatically.  Flash effects and smooth cuts let Phillips entertain while driving the narrative of the neighborhood and creating a visual foundation for a really enjoyable street record. 

Running up now over a thousand plays in 5 days with a minimal amount of promotion excluding Instagram, Kiddo and Marlo seem to be supported exclusively by real fans, an organic movement evolving through the trust for young Emcees to deliver their stories and give context and scope to the outside world about the code and creed they live by. 

Check out “Top Dawg” below: