On June 19th, 2022 Vaughn Davis proved himself to be music’s present best kept secret revealed, advancing his solo catalogue under the DoubleCrown imprint he’s the co-creator of. During the whole event of ‘Wisdom Is Rich’, the musician’s third album, Vaughn administers chiefly through crowded platforms with a daily song upload count of over 60,000. In his own words on a quatrain “Made new from the tractors / scoffers, gang stalkers / testing my steez / came out the fire, refined.”
Vaughn Davis, 32, is an extraordinary craftsman, a musical wordsmith, a reporter of the Black experience’s variety, a rising star, who is evidently navigating the global wickedness under divine discipline. It’s been four years since Vaughn’s last effort ‘B-Sidez’, but that hiatus involved steady exercise of his abilities — Vaughn’s behind the curtain role to DoubleCrown amid that period kept him in condition. ‘Wisdom Is Rich’, accepts the difficult task of blending Hebrew faith topics with everything enthusiasts scurry to playlists for — it makes people dance, sit, ruminate, get hypnotized by its production, and sing along. Other subjects on ‘Wisdom Is Rich’ include outgrowing friendships, black empowerment, women impact & scripture references. This album has sole production from DoubleCrown Co-Founder and Icon in the making, Khaleel Mandel. Vaughn remembers “some of the best memories are getting the beats from Khaleel and really having free range to create. Getting new beats is like getting in a new relationship. It’s the honeymoon of the album creating process.”
Intro, “Hello Model” belongs at nationwide annual summer block parties, as over a hammering uptempo exemplar arrangement
Vaughn and Khaleel lend their fair share of brand new flows. Female French vocals accompany the two on this intro pronouncing this album’s immediate international appeal.
“My Juliet doesn’t miss a beat to her choreography” Mandel raps as a featured Female’s voice speaks “No honey, you’re doing it wrong“ continuing by scatting rhythms to dance moves like Kennedy Center Honoree, Debbie Allen — A model woman.
There’s something to be said about virtuosos who can reflect the current state we’re all under, free of leaving contrived and hokey impressions on the audience. Millions of musicians have predictably had their crack at naming songs after a certain topic that’ll remain nameless — hint:
it gets discussed everyday and rhymes with persona. The album standout “Couronne Supérieure” translates to ‘Crown Superior’ yet the constant major scale melody ‘Couronne’ [‘Corona’ phonetically] sung by featured artist Amber Ogechi is a fantastic Easter egg Vaughn neatly placed.
Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ld7oIrOPfkE
The instrumentation on said song sounds like a one take performance by a full band with guitarists, keyboardists, a bassist and a drummer playing hard hitting patterns on an AKAI MPC. The technique Khaleel develops for Amber’s harmonies throw us in a time machine where we’re being directly sang to by all of the Pointer Sisters. It is at this point of the album where Vaughn gives us his first life update “Had to go off the grid, return to the Father / find me in a secret place, I mean a hidden place.”
Production for “Wisdom Is Rich” began in August 2021, and the concept for what’s now the album’s fourth song “Her Said” was one of the first ideas Vaughn brought to Khaleel. Davis was absorbed with Gary Numan synthesizers at this time. On “Her Said” accompanied by vocal consonances from DoubleCrown members, it feels exactly like a dream somebody don’t want to wake up from. Vaughn then raps “She said ‘you can only find me if you found the sun, but the father had to send for you / gonna get rocky, don’t let it stop me, only to refine thee.” A sum of this record’s dance floor essentials is a departure of sorts from Davis’s debut “New Chi”.
If asked to choose what other than his music Vaughn Davis will be more notorious for, it will be his knack for coming up with titles. In terms of his reasoning for naming this album ‘Wisdom Is Rich’, Vaughn explains “It stems from my understanding of Solomon, in which he asked the Most High for Wisdom over everything. In return He was given Wisdom and all riches because his request pleased the Lord. For what is knowledge without wisdom? Anyone can have knowledge but lack the morals to not take, steal or kill for titles. Knowledge can lead us astray and down the very road we were seeking to avoid. However, wisdom is what holds our tongue in hot situations. Seers ones conscious when they’re buying shoes instead of investing in fine art.” It is in the aftermath of life’s thrown curveball when wisdom can be effective. After half of the album was written, the laptop Vaughn was working from suddenly crashed, pausing production for about five months — a chance for Davis to ameliorate on his application of wise willpower. Vaughn details on the first verse of ‘R.A.T.’ “Upset your stomach / Wrote it in my laptop then the hard drive crashed / thought I lost the flow, self cultivated slow.” On the opener of ‘R.A.T.’ Mandel deceleratingly samples a song called ‘Armed & Dangerous’ by Vaughn’s father Bronco Slay. A tear jerking section of the album due to the rarity of father son collaborations in hip hop — and it leads by example to contrasting industry professionals like a Lebron James type who seek to grant their own wish by performing beside their respective children.
Not considering himself a singer, Vaughn Davis is naturally able to melodiously vocalize. “Telephone (Interlude) ” is directed by low-rider dulcet drums and neo-soul keyboard sprinkles — Vaughn sings “I know what you see / world gone mad.” The interlude has a freshness but a familiarity of psychedelic soul essentials.
Vaughn corroborates as soon as he heard the musical arrangement for Olympic love anthem “Sha’Carri”, it “rang out as an everlasting youthful piece.” He continues, “The combination of trumpets, funky drums and an 80’s filter gives it a perfect mixture of flashbacks and catchy new sounds.” On the lyrical front Davis focuses on describing what makes Sha’Carri Richardson a modern prototype influence. Richardson almost serves as a metaphor for whoever welcomes an underdog journey — “Never slowing down, forget / Y’all looking for me, I said it” Vaughn raps. The harsh reality of unjust deserting and being singled out as just another statistic, can be the catalyst to a diamond in the rough. It will be vital to monitor this “Sha’Carri” anthem’s place in the athlete’s future historic races, and history as a whole. The song in tribute to the Olympic contender has been designated as the first single for ‘Wisdom Is Rich.’
Vaughn Davis has delivered an album that fits the benchmark for albums selected to be preserved at Harvard University 20 years from now. The rhapsodic outro “400 Up” featuring Vaughn’s close comrade Kenn — capsules the motif serving as this gifted album’s bow. Over a Khaleel Mandel symphonic hip hop composition, Vaughn raps “Neshama, Neshama Like mans form Crust of earth / Like like Guard me like the first son out the garden Dark / Like like Cloth me in white linen / Gold chain like Adam in the cave.” With an incorporated outstanding homemade Khaleel sample of a children’s choir singing “Praise to Yahweh” — Vaughn ponderously breaks down the aforesaid lyric.
“This piece stands out out because in my opinion it highlights man’s creation from breath or ‘neshama’ (breath or spirit) and the fall from the garden/ paradise. It depicts one’s journey into the unknown, though scary there is protection from the Most High that keeps them safe. It shows us that faith is the substance of things hoped for. That though we may not see what’s right in front of us, we preserve in spite of our fear, knowing that the one who made the universe has a place and purpose for us.”
This five star album is Vaughn Davis’s breakout project. Every other feature from contributors Mike & Keion Jevon serve as the kind of cameos from Tarantino films people are left awestruck by. The furtherance of Khaleel Mandel’s composition abilities has distanced him another couple hundred million kilometers from his contemporaries. In a year where it’s easy to get daily music rush from usual superstar suspects — Vaughn Davis & ‘Wisdom Is Rich’ bring awaited new life to music.
Media ContactCompany Name: Star Web MediaContact Person: Media RelationsEmail: Send EmailCountry: United StatesWebsite: https://www.instagram.com/onekhaleelmandel/
