Prolific and gifted hip-hop artist Moka Only has left his Vancouver base to tour behind his latest release, the brilliant Airport 6, which you can stream here until Nov. 8.
ListenAirport 6 by Moka Only
Streaming until Nov. 8
Tracklist
“Sandy got all up in the machinery and messed everything up,” Moka Only jokes from a hotel room in Guelph, Ont., where he’s been staying since playing the city a few days ago. As it turns out, the Frankenstorm had little impact on the rapper, as he made his way between Guelph and Brampton to do some recording before playing the Mansion in Kingston on Oct. 31 and Nocturne in Toronto on Nov. 1.
Even though many people were stranded by delayed or cancelled flights this week, Moka Only’s tour behind Airport 6 is just a coincidence.
“Airport 6 is the final instalment in my Airport series, which is something I’ve done for the last few years,” he explains. “Typically it’s been released in the springtime and been more of a mixtape. This year I wanted to make it special because I was drawing it to a close. So, it’s sort of a summary of the previous ones. I like doing regular albums but I like doing a series to give people an ongoing subscription to something.”
The first Airport album was based on a photo Moka Only took at the Montreal airport and inspired by his life as a travelling musician. Every year, that theme and the springtime is conjured on these records, which, given his prolific catalogue, he clearly holds particularly dear.
When Moka Only returns to Vancouver, he’ll jump back into the studio to work on another series: Martian Xmas. Initiated eight years ago, he says it’s winter-themed music designed to warm you up like a bowl of soup. He also has projects on the go, like the Spacesuits LP with LMNO & Mr. Brady and an album in the works with the Pharcyde’s Bootie Brown, not to mention plans to make his next solo effort.
For now, or at least until the end of this week, Moka Only’s all about Airport 6. “People are saying it’s my best work,” he says, with a hint of incredulity or suspicion about the reviews. “I put a lot of effort into it for sure and it all comes from the heart, but people are gonna say what they say.”
Watch this interview with Moka Only:
See Moka Only at the Mansion in Kingston on Oct. 31 and Nocturne in Toronto on Nov. 1.
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Allow me to reintroduce myself: Moka Only