Ink

Kansas City has been a hotbed for great hip hop lately. Local MC Ray Pierce, aka Steddy P, gives KC another record to be proud of with Style Like Mind.

The production by Ben Bounce, overseen by DJ Mahf and engineered by Matt Sawicki, is exceptional. The tracks shine with a sound that’s crisp but warm and arrangements that are busy but not overindulgent. The title track is brilliant, with throbbing bass and atmospheric synths that are more evocative of Air than 50 Cent.

All the brilliant production in the world wouldn’t mean a thing if Steddy P didn’t have the skills to match. There’s not a lot to find fault with here, lyrically. Sure, quite a bit of breath is devoted to his skills as an MC. But Steddy is deft, and rapping about how crafty a rapper you are isn’t unheard of in the genre.

There’s plenty of other subject matter, including standing apart from the crowd on “Format,” managing the difficulty in balancing a relationship and a music career in “Miss You” and turning life around after making mistakes on “Maverick.” One of the best tracks is “Kenneth Arnold,” a smart, fun song that imaginatively equates hip hop with close encounters of an extraterrestrial sort.

Overall, Style Like Mind is individualistic, positive and refreshing. While Steddy P has a unique style, one thing he has in common with other area MCs — D/Will and Stik Figa come to mind — is that he avoids the macho and materialistic tendencies common in hip hop. Aside from alien and “Donnie Darko” references, Steddy raps about real life, his life, representing himself as a smart, maybe even nerdy guy who loves hip hop with an obsessive devotion.

Much of Style Like Mind is about staying true to oneself and putting the work into what you do and love in order to make it happen. It’s a common theme in local hip hop lately, but displaying a love for one’s art and the work ethic to make it happen — on your own terms without selling out or fronting as something you aren’t — is a theme that bears repeating.