Steve 'Flash' JuonThe curiously named 1900Rugrat (born Miles Spiel) hails from West Palm Beach. I’m sure that I’m not the only one who hears “Palm Beach” and thinks “living that rich life,” but that’s an entirely different Palm Beach with a population under 10,000. The West side has a population over ten times that size and is part of the greater Miami metropolitan area of over six million people. The point? It’s like any major metropolitan area in any U.S. city. It’s got the same issues with poverty, economic disenfranchisement, police brutality, crime and drugs. 1900 didn’t grow up with a butler to his left and a maid to his right. In fact he was adopted when he was only two weeks old and grew up in nearby Limestone Creek — it’s also part of metro Miami but smaller than any of the places already discussed.
1900 was pursuing the road to success we’ve seen from so many artists this generation — mixtape releases on SoundCloud, fame and virality on TikTok, streaming numbers on Spotify. What really took him to the next level though was his collaboration with Philly rapper Skrilla for “Auntie Ain’t Playing.” Chris Marek, Prodbylandn and Reallyindig0 gave them a slowed down loop of Kanye’s hit “Power” from 2010 and they ran with it. That’s certainly a choice… one I wouldn’t make given Mr. West probably gets a cut of sales and streams, but I can’t deny it works. “Porch 2 the Pent” includes it as well as his other viral “One Take Freestyle” remix with Kodak Black.
“You just a hatin’ bitch, I don’t give two fucks”
Certainly not. With his raspy voice and neck tattoos, you’d never mistake him for giving any effs, although you might mistake him for a UFC fighter. He’s in his early 20’s so he’d probably be a rookie on Dana White’s Contender Series, not a seasoned vet or a title contender, but I digress. “Probably wouldn’t know my name if I never rapped” quips 1900 on “Never Dat” and again there’s no cap to his statement. He’s looking like a younger and more thugged out Eminem while sounding like an older and more strung out K-Solo. How did he get vocals so scratchy so early in his life?
So here are the positives about “Porch 2 the Pent.” First off it’s a full album, and I’m talking a heavyweight one by this era’s standards, clocking in at 20 tracks and over 53 minutes. Secondly his instincts about who to collaborate with are entirely on point for crossover success. Lil Yachty is on “Bussin Baby” and BossMan Dlow is on “Cheat Codes” in addition to the previously mentioned collaborations. If you want to keep going viral, you keep working with people who went viral. You feed off each other’s success. It’s calculated and insular but you can’t knock the fact it works.
More positives to note — 1900 is a rapper not a singer. He’s not disguising his vocals behind 20 layers of AutoTune, and given how crispy he sounds anyway, that was the correct stylistic choice. His Florida drawl also stands out even amongst fellow Floridian emcees. Given all these compliments I’ve been handing out you might have been waiting for the other show to drop. Here it is — songs like “WTF” add absolutely nothing new to the conversation. Black or white, it don’t matter, he’s saying the same shit the same way.
“She said she tryin’ to come to the top floor, I ain’t gonna let her up
Walk ’round with all this drank, I got different colors in my cup
I just popped 2 X, I got meds in my gut
I put bands on a slut, bitch I’m smidge, what the fuck?
What the fuck?”
Indeed. “Porch 2 the Pent” is nearly a full hour of cliches. Need to brag about your expensive foreign? “Two Tone Maybach.” Need to party and have sex while on drugs? “Molly Girl.” Need to show off your bankroll? “She Keep It Drip.” I’m not saying any of this makes 1900Rugrat a bad rapper. I’m just saying that Miles Spiel has an interesting story, an interesting sound, an interesting look, and for better or worse that wound up boiling down to him being the same as everybody else. I can’t lie. I find that a little disappointing.