It took an involuntary residency in Waupun Correctional Institution to bring Milwaukee’s Kenyatta Kuykendoll to hip-hop. And he was brought into Christianity on the way to becoming a rapper. Prodigal Son acts as Kuykendoll’s testimony of a transformed life and a unique debut into his genre. He’s capable of throwing down compelling rhymes over the sorts of electronic beats populating current urban radio and samples recalling ’80s and ’90s tracks. However, he makes a distinct impression by the way his thick, choppy flow cascades over more organic sounds, such as sinuously bluesy electric guitar riffs, acoustic folk strumming, spacey jazz trumpet and tabla and sitar in a sort of modified East Indian raga.
The cumulative effect is that of the lost half-brother shared by Shaquille O’Neal and Chubb Rock on his way to a seminary degree, bouncing between standard rap cadences, poetry slam urgency and storefront Pentecostal sermonizing dynamics, with some soulfully throaty singing and the occasional “Whoo!” thrown in. Prodigal Son brings those elements together for over an hour. Mentions and samples of certain prosperity-oriented celebrity preachers may be off-putting for some, and Kuykendoll may want to aim for a bit more concision his next time in the studio. Nonetheless, Son marks the emergence of a considerable talent who could go in any number of intriguing directions.
