Coming off the success of his first album, Act 1, Filipino American rapper Ez Mil (born Ezekiel Miller) comes back with a more hopeful, and mature sound with his second album, DU4LI7Y.
For Act 1, Ez states that the album’s progression was “light to dark”, DU4LI7Y is the opposite.
“I tried to make a continuation of my first album, so it starts off as that, DU4LI7Y is dark to light,” he said.
Off of DU4LI7Y comes two singles, “Re-Up” and “Dalawampu’t Dalawang OO (2200),” both showcasing a more mature side of Ez Mil’s magic with words. As someone who “writes para di mabaliw”, the rapper shared that he found himself to have suddenly matured over the course of the pandemic.
“The simplicity of the words and how they were phrased, it definitely sounds like an older Ez,” he comments on the album’s theme of returning to his roots. “If I look at it from a second person’s perspective, ganun talaga nangyari from Act 1 to DU4LI7Y,”
Despite the similarities, however, the two singles have very different themes. According to the 23 year old Las Vegas based musician, “Re-up” was a way for him to “re-up the product”, along with flexing his fluency both in Tagalog and English. Meanwhile, Dalwampu’t Dalawang OO is “a narration of my own story filled with struggle” inspired by Olongapo City.
“It was to re-up the new product to the world who listens to Ez Mil, while Dalwampu’t Dalawang OO is based on my hometown of Olongapo. Yung cadence noon was inspired by the Olongapo hymn. With this song, I hope listeners can feel the angst, and my pride, mixed with orchestral instruments fused with nerve wracking-beats. It’s a song about the citizens of Olongapo first and foremost, the bad and the beauty – but it doesn’t just stick to one city but can speak to all Filipinos as a whole. I’ve always been proud of representing my hometown, 2200, so anyone who is proud of their city will definitely feel this,”
Having just returned to the Philippines, Ez Mil will be performing across the country for the first time and hopes to make his fellow Filipinos proud.
“I can’t put it into words how excited I am. We’re just gonna have fun. It’s overwhelming, super grateful to everyone who’s been very supportive of me, my music. Just the thought of coming home, man – it’s a mixture of excitement and thrill that I can’t shake off. Performing in the homeland is very special to me because I haven’t done this before. I’ve always been proud to represent my hometown, my roots – I just want them to be happy and proud. I want to give back all the love and support that I’ve been getting and I’m very excited to meet my fans in the Philippines, and see my family, friends – and everyone! Really looking forward to this, and just to do what I love doing and have fun!”
Ez Mil’s forthcoming second LP, DU4LI7Y, is due out this summer via FFP Records. Details for his shows can be found on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.