One of my favorite things in the world is when I come across a musical artist with a sound, style, and overall presence that is entirely individual. In a music world that is full of copycats, it is nice to come across someone who legitimately feels fresh. An artist I have been getting into recently who totally fits that mold is Khantrast.  He has been going viral frequently lately, and it is easy to see why. Khantrast has been honing his craft for a few years now, and is really starting to see the fruits of his labor. Khantrast first started to pop off on YouTube in the late 2010s for his anime-themed freestyles. Particularly, his ‘Naruto Bluebird Freestyle’ and ‘Demon Slayer Gurenge Freestyle’ did numbers for him on YouTube and TikTok. Over the last couple of years, though, his new original music has been gaining traction as well. Tracks like ‘Let’s Ride,’ ‘She Bad,’ and ‘You Got Jokes’ all went viral and put him on the map as one of the next ones up. It seems like Khantrast has truly honed in his sound and style over the last year or so, though. His sound has become increasingly hard-hitting, really making him stand out from his peers. His take on NY Drill music is fresh and fun, and it has such a commanding quality to it. Khantrast kicked it into a new gear in the autumn of 2024, with 2 great tracks that have been all over my social media recently, ‘Eastside Bop’ and ‘Genghis.’ He has started off 2025 strongly also, as he recently dropped the ‘‘Landed In Brooklyn Remix’ with Kyle Richh. Below, I wanted to briefly talk about why these new singles from Khantrast. Please let me know in the comments what you think of Khantrast and these new tracks, and also comment the names of any other up-and-coming tracks you think I should check out!

‘Eastside Bop’ was the first Khantrast single to catch my attention, having come out back on November 22. This raucous banger interpolates another dope Drill song that swept the nation last year, ‘Embrace It’ by Ndotz. The beat and overall pacing on ‘Eastside Bop’ definitely fall in line with the original track. Whereas the latter track is pretty light and spritely, Khantrast’s version feels a lot grittier and meaner. The way that the melody is flipped for ‘Eastside Bop’ is super cool. The guitar-driven melody on this one is so funky and murky. This melody has a foreboding tone to it that really draws me in. Khantrast’s flow on ‘Eastside Bop’ is pretty similar to the one on ‘Embrace It,’ but his harsh tone and presence set this one apart. ‘Eastside Bop’ is a larger-than-life party banger, but there is something intimidating about it as well. ‘Genghis,’ which was dropped on December 20. ‘Genghis’ is a track with an instrumental that contains another really cool flip, this time with the flip coming on a classic track. ‘A Milli’ samples the iconic song ‘A Milli’ by Lil Wayne. When I first listened to this one and that ‘A Milli’ sample kicked in, I was a little wary, as Lil Wayne is one of my favorites and the original ‘A Milli’ is so great. I have to say, though, Khantrast and his producer, Doomsday, absolutely kill it on this one. The way that this sample is flipped on this one goes so damn hard. The beat for this one is heavily distorted, intense, and massive. A sinister synth-driven melody is added in as well, which gives the song texture and sets it apart from Lil Wayne’s version. As cool as this instrumental is, the Khantrast’s rap performance is what takes ‘Genghis’ over the top. Everything about his delivery is great. The way he is constantly switching flows makes the song enthralling and makes it feel all the more fierce. Khantrast’s gruff tone fits this instrumental extremely well and adds to the already intense and intrepid energy of the track. Khantrast certainly did Lil Wayne justice with ‘Genghis.’ Khantrast kicked off 2025 by grabbing another new rap star from New York. Kyle Richh, for the remix of ‘Landed In Brooklyn.’ The melody for ‘Landed In Brooklyn’ is so funky and fun. It has a bit of an analog sound to it, making it feel nostalgic and modern at the same time. The beat for this one has a fast-paced, in-your-face Drill tempo that just makes me want to rage the night away when I listen to this one. Both Khantrast and Kyle Ricch take the already raucous energy of this instrumental and amplify it with their verses. They both have very harsh, low tones, and rapid, audacious flows; the way that both artists deliver their verses gives this song a huge feeling that is so fun and menacing. The ‘Landed In Brooklyn’ is a bold banger that starts 2025 on a high note for Khantrast. With these three awesome new tracks, Khantrast is definitely one to watch this year. I am excited to see what he does next, as he has the potential to blow up in a huge way in 2025.