Happy Holiday Weekend from the WVCC Radio Family down in Miami, and from our peoples out in Brooklyn, HIHWAY ENT, who would like to invite you over to their crib to celebrate Christmas, and the release of their new LP, MI CASA. The face of the label, Brooklynite ASE HIH, launched HIHWAY ENT to give a home to unsigned artists who the industry was sleeping on. He has amassed a team of street smart hitmen who are ready to make waves in the underground. With production from Patterson NJ’s TOUCHIN MONEYBOY, FRANK from Syracuse, and even some production from ASE HIH himself, fooling around with some simple sample looping, MI CASA is a great introduction to the HIHWAY ENT Family if this is your 1st time paying them a visit. They welcome you with open arms, and a lit blunt.
Listen to MI CASA by ASE HIH below
The album starts with a suspenseful low fi banger that keeps your head nodding even tho the drums are stiffled like a gun muzzle by a pillow. ASE HIGH & fellow HIHWAY rep SAY LOUVE, go verse for verse over both the Haunting intro Beat, and the Future Retro sounding beat flip that makes up the 2nd half of the album opener, “SAME NIGGAZ”. This gives way to “RAP CHECKS”, the slapping lead single off of MI CASA. The production on this one gives us that vibe that we have all come to relate with the Griselda Movement that has reanimated New York Hip Hop the past 5 years. The beat drops and my face automatically screws up. This shit is filthy. On track 3, the TOUCHINMONEYBOY produced BROADWAY, The album slows down to a vibe that the ladies can enjoy. This is driving around the city at night in a big body SUV music, and ASE & LOUVE shine like the lights in Time Square. Then ASE HIH goes into his 420 bag on SMOKERS CLUB and shows you how he earned his name. He spits enough fire to get everybody high enough to start hearing the voice of the late great MF DOOM over the breakdown, right before the harps come in and turns SMOKERS CLUB into a whole other silky vibe that ASE uses to tell as story of a good day gone wrong. The beat flips are starting to be a running theme on the project, turning some songs into two, and I aint made at it at all.
There are a pair of Story Telling tracks that are like a part 1 and part 2 on the album. BITCHES FROM TEANECK & BITCHES FROM EAST NY. A light brag about picking up a Bad Bitch in the City and the dangers that might come along with this appearant come up. “BITCHES FROM EAST NY” is one of my favorite joints on the project. The beat is smooth, with a dope blend of Piano Key cuts and a sexy sax sample flip. ASE HIGH & SAY LOUVE go back and forth on a story about a link up with another baddie that had darker intentions than a Netflix and Chill night. You might be shocked by the turn of events, but as ASE states at the end of the song, , “this is just another story from Public Housing”.
Even though its just a verse over a simple looping of the Donny Darko theme song, Mad World by Gary Jules, FACES is an instant attention grabber for me. No Drums, but ASE HIH manages to find a groove in the loop and rides the pocket like a 7 foot Jockie. Label mate, HIHWAY LEY joins the race and rides the beat like one of those Big Tire Mountain Bike kids holding a Wheely for a NY City Mile. Def one of the stand out tracks off MI CASA, even with the minimilist production by ASE HIH himself. The FIND OUT comes on with an addictive base line, electric guitar, and keys samples that grab you quickly by the ear like G-Ma giving you a piece of her mind, and ASE & CHOPPO take advantage and bar your ears off while the beat holds your attention hostage.
LAST FRIDAY is another laid back moment on the project. At least thats what I thought while ASE tells another story about pulling a shorty with his iron clad game, then all of a sudden, another beat flip turns this track into theme music for a home invasion in the blink of an eye. Shit goes from Dinner and a Movie to mad dark and vicious real quick, just like a date night could turn deadly if you slipping on your pimping in the city of Brooklyn.
Then there’s SUPA 8. A smooth bop produced by TOUCHINMONEYBOY, which sounds distinctly like a chopped and screwed version of REDMAN’S “I CANT WAIT”. ASE & LOUVE understand the assignement and drop their verses accordingly. ASE talks about his Out of Town Motel Missions with slick bars like “Touching Down in another Town, You know I came to play/ Feel like PRIME, Dancing in my Prime, stepping in some Yaes/ Every line, Every Fucking Line, Im compressing the yay/ Hit my unk with a sample, Haters say okay okay/”. The vibe created by the TOUCHINMONEYBOY produced heat rock, and the bar work from ASE & LOUVE make this another of my album favorites.
The album closes with another feel good, two faced beat. 1st ASE continues his escapades with the oposite sex over the chimes and bassline of the 1st half of BEEN NICE, until the beat morphs into a horn driven loop that is an excelent end to a solid street hop album.
Just like the outro skit on RAGGAMUFFIN declares, This album is a lot of things, There is a whole lot going on on the surface, but at the end of the day, the bottom line is about the money. ASE HIH is a business man. He understood early on that it would take more than just being nice on the mic to make it in this game. Instead of knocking on doors, begging to be pimped by a Record Label, He invested in himself and in those he believes in, and started his own Brand. Thats what HIHWAY ENT. is. A Brand, A Label, and a Family who has their eyes locked on the prize. Thats what they are all hustling for. You can tell by the music output, they aint playing no games. They take this music hustle as serious as flipping birds, so come correct when you knock on the front door of MI CASA for that work.
Follow the HIHWAY ENT Team on IG. @asehihway @Saylouve_ @
MI CASA up on All digital streaming platforms/ HiHway.com
Written by 8ch2Owens
Founder of Vice City Cypher, WVCC Radio, PROFRESH Publicty. With over 20 Years in South Florida’s Hip Hop Scene 8ch2Owens has carved his name into the Miami Hip Hop history books, and now uses his talents to promote the best in South Florida Indie Hip Hop and Underground Hip Hop from around the globe.
