Koto the Friend’s Debut Album “FOTO” Is a Beautiful Self-Portrait of the Authentic New York Artist
The independent emcee is an open book welcoming us to come flip the pages and learn from his life experiences
Kota the Friend is as pure as the alkaline water has continuously endorsed his entire career. He has the heart of a lion and the head of an elder. His modesty is only matched by his honesty and his positive demeanor is impossible to fabricate.
This past week the talented New York rapper dropped his debut album which was released independently. FOTO is 19 songs long and runs for just under an hour putting it at the longer end of the spectrum in today’s music climate.
At its core, FOTO is a concept album that takes listeners through Kota’s life, one memory at a time. In an interview with Donna-Claire Chesman of DJ Booth, Kota speaks about his love for photographs and how it led to the shaping of the album: “My mother will tell you that I could look at photo albums all day. I like pictures because it brings me back to that time. I like feeling things. I feel like people like to feel things. This album is like a photo book. It’s like flipping through the pages of my life. The stuff that makes you sad, and the stuff that makes you really happy. It’s my version of a photo album.”
The album opens with a monologue from an old head that has watched Kota grow up in the hood. The wise man, voiced by Richard Parker, advises Kota to enjoy his neighborhood and take some photos before it changes.
The second track “Church” might be my favorite track on the album in large part due to the mesmerizing flow that Kota locks into on the second half of verse one. Kota has a true gift for being able to keep the tempo of his music low to maintain a relaxed feeling while still making it sound bright and uplifting. “Church” is a perfect example of Kota masterfully mixing a slower tempo with major melodies to create a product that is easy and enjoyable to listen to. When Kota raps “Hands up in the air like we in church” I couldn’t help but be reminded of a rapper from Chicago, also independent, who has frequently alluded to church as a party.
“Hollywood” is another early standout where Kota addresses those from his hometown that didn’t support him on the come up but now feel entitled to his fame. The production on this track is excellent and feels different from most of the other instrumentals on this project which sound similar. One of my favorite moments on the album comes in the second verse of this song when Kota talks about ghosting fake homies when they hit his phone:
“I be hitting niggas with the dot, dot, dot
Can we kick it when you back home, dot, dot, dot
Can you put me on a track, bro, dot, dot, dot
Didn’t even know you rapped, bro, dot, dot, dot”
The seventh track “Chicago Diner” was released last year as a single and is a sweet love song that sounds like the soundtrack to a lazy morning.
“Bagels” was one of the few instances on FOTO where Kota’s positivity and vulnerability come off as slightly corny and while I don’t think it is Kota’s best writing, I think Lizzy Ashliegh’s layered vocals throughout the track are what makes it feel artificial for me. With this being said, the track is catchy and based on the rest of Kota’s music, I think it’s fair to say he rather be corny than misleading.
The twelfth track “Mommy” is the potentially the most thought-provoking track on the album as it showcases Kota rapping from three different perspectives. Verse one is from the perspective of Kota’s own mother and gives us insight into how he was raised. His mom was positive and uplifting (“You better than some Uptowns/You better than your bad decisions”) while always instilling knowledge into the brain of a young Kota. Based on the previous interlude and her mentioning in the first verse, I assume that in verse two Kota is rapping from the perspective of his aunt Marcell speaking to her son. His aunt had a very different style of parenting than her sister and seems far more worried with monetary wealth than the values she is responsible to teach to her son. Verse three is rapped from the perspective of a kid who grew up with no home, no family, and all the ambition in the world. While I’m not sure who this character is exactly, it seems likely to me that the narrator of verse three is a fictitious character whose purpose is to show that while Kota and his cousin may have grown up in difficult situations, someone somewhere has it worse. Kota’s profound perspective on life is one of his greatest strengths and it shines through on “Mommy”.
“Backyard” was the last single released before FOTO. It’s a light-hearted bop that will be gracing sunny days in the park all summer. While I am a big fan of the track, “Uncle Cal’s Interlude” which prefaces it seems out of place and easily adds the least to the album out of all the interludes.
When speaking about FOTO Kota made sure to let it be known that every good photo album captures every memory, not just the good ones. “Good To Be Home” is the picture in the album that brings back bad memories, but memories that are equally as important as the good ones nonetheless. This track contains the most melancholy instrumental on the album and Kota delivers the darkest stories to accompany it. From casual gangbangs to drug overdoses, Kota peels back any protective layers on “Good To Be Home” and is deeply authentic.
Kota concludes the album perfectly with the titled-track. “FOTO” is one of the sweetest yet most heartbreaking stories on the album. The song gives us a glimpse into a beautiful relationship Kota had with a girl. The story ends with the female passing away after the two seperate. This is the perfect outro because Kota uses this story to reemphasize the importance of photographs and appreciating those moments before that’s all they are.
On FOTO Kota accomplishes exactly what he set out to achieve. He paints a picture of his life so vivid that I felt like I was there when Kota’s mom and his aunt Marcell saw their father at the dance studio for the first time in years. Kota beautifully creates a photo album that he can go back to and reference while still keeping the quality of his music and its mainstream appeal at an all-time high. Thank you to Kota The Friend for a summer soundtrack that I predict will still be getting played in the late months of Autumn.
Favorite Tracks:
Church
Hollywood
KOALA
Rating: 8
Listen to FOTO here:
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